Cruel Lives
by lady-demacabre
Summary: Sarah's tie to the Labyrinth brings her back to the Underground, where she learns about a princess under a curse. Will Sarah help her old enemy break the curse... and what price will she pay? J/S Now complete, feel free to review.
1. Prologue

_For some strange reason the combination of listening to the soundtrack from Dracula: Entre l'amour et la mort, and then going to see Verdi's Aida conjured the muses to create this story._ _I'm still not sure how that happened._  


* * *

As Jareth walked down the empty hall of his castle beyond the Goblin City, a ghost ran by him. Though there was no haunting spirit ill at ease in the afterlife, the loss of one most dear to him left echoes among the chaos of the castle. The halls where she would run laughing, the gardens where she sat singing, the room where she spent living, all were silent.

Jareth stepped into his study and sat down to the importantly boring paperwork. While he was going over oubliette maintenance a loud crack sounded through the room. Unfazed by the sudden disturbance, Jareth slowly looked up to face the intruder.

A tall woman with black hair and blacker eyes stood in the middle of the room. As usual she was wearing a tight navy blue and gold dress that left nothing to the imagination.

"Jareth," she purred. "You are so hard and stubborn. When will you forget your pride and end this torment?"

"If to end it means giving into you, never!"

"Then you have doomed her."

"I was not the one who cursed her. That was you, Amneris!"

She laughed, a dry and hacking cackle. "Perhaps I did. But the curse still stands. The one you cherish most will live as a mortal until you marry a woman as cruel as yourself. And time is running short. Mortals only live so long, and when she dies she will be gone forever. The poor things are so fragile; anything might kill her at any moment."

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Please, Jareth. I am not so foolish as to harm her. She is more use to me alive. But I am only reminding you how perilous the Aboveground is. You are running out of time, Goblin King. Just give in. You know that I am the only woman as cruel as you. Do you think you will find such a woman among the Fae Court? All those pure and gentle creatures that have worked for a millennia to purge the evil from their queens? No Jareth, I, the Queen of Nightmares, am the only you can take to end the curse."

"Never!" he repeated.

She just cackled again. "You know where to find me." She then disappeared with another deafening crack.

Jareth sagged against his chair. It had been too many years. Time was getting short. And Amneris was right about the Fae Court. A woman as cruel as himself? Then he started laughing. The curse said nothing about the woman being a Fae. Time was running out, but there was still time enough to wait for more than one love's return to his life.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah Williams hurried down the steps to the platform. She cursed when she saw that the next train would not be arriving for another ten minutes. She walked down the platform and found a patch of wall to lean against while waiting. It was only a few minutes later that another girl joined her.

"Finally you make it," Sarah grumbled.

"Don't get mad at me. It's not my fault the Circle Line always is delayed," Jenny replied. "And you're the one that left me stuck on the other side of the road while you ran off."

"Sorry, I'm just worried about getting there on time."

"Yeah, at my expense. Don't worry. I've lived here longer than you, and I've left plenty of time for us to get there. So just leave things to me."

"All right."

Though Sarah still sounded cranky, she was glad that she knew Jenny. The dark blonde haired girl was not only the talented supporting female to Sarah's lead female in the play they were performing, but she was a terrific flatmate. Sarah had only just moved to London for the musical, but Jenny had lived in London all her life. She was easy to live with, and never seemed fazed by Sarah's tempers.

After Sarah's time in the Labyrinth she had stopped calling things unfair, but that didn't mean she stopped being angry about them. She had tried to improve things with her stepmother, but their personalities were doomed to clash. After high school, Sarah left home and went to a small acting college. It was there that a talent scout spotted her and decided she was perfect to play Elhemina in the newly translated musical Dracula: Entre L'Amour et la Mort, or this version Dracula: Between Love and Death. So she moved to London where the musical would start on the West End. Jenny was playing Lucy, and had offered Sarah a room in her flat. The two got on really well. They both had a love of fantasy, both to the point of actually believing in it.

Sarah had reason to believe in it; she had defeated the Labyrinth after all. During high school her contact with her friends in the Underground had dwindled, and now had stopped completely. But she still knew that it all existed.

Jenny was different. As far as Sarah knew, Jenny had never been to the Underground. But there was something strange about her. She would occasionally just say something without realising it. Just that morning when Sarah had lost a sock after doing laundry, Jenny had blamed goblins, and then said that they often got into such mischief Aboveground when their king wasn't keeping an eye on them. She had spoken jokingly, but the words disturbed Sarah. When she questioned Jenny about that, Jenny had been honestly confused and said she had just made it up on the spot.

A similar thing had happened when they went to the ballet and saw Swan Lake. Jenny had been disturbed by the whole plot.

"But it isn't like that! The Owl King is in love with the Swan. And he doesn't have a daughter! It's… it's something else. The Swan can't see the Owl's love because he's a natural predator, but swans aren't exactly the nicest birds either. I can't remember it all, but he is NOT the enemy!"

"Uh, Jenny…" Sarah began, "that's not how the story goes."

"Well, I'm sure I've read a version like that somewhere," Jenny had insisted.

And now they were on their way to the first dress rehearsal of Dracula.

"Sarah, I was thinking," Jenny said. "You really are like Mina."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, Elhemina's first song, Cruel and Tender; it summarizes you perfectly."

"I'm not cruel!" Sarah protested.

_Your eyes can be so cruel_…

The memory came flooding back as the train finally pulled up to the platform. While pushing past the debarking passengers, she tried to push away the memory of mismatched eyes and wild blonde hair.

* * *

_My other story _Written in the Stars_ is just on hold until its muse returns. I have every intention of continuing it, but for now this story is my focus. I have a whole bunch already written, so updates will be consistent and dependent on reviews._


	2. Just Peachy

"Hogwart!"

"It's _Hoggle_!" the dwarf grumbled as he turned to face the newly appeared king.

"How long has it been since you heard from _that girl_?" Jareth asked.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Hoggle grumbled. Luckily there had been no punishment for any of them for helping Sarah, and even luckier was that the king didn't even bother about it when they kept contacting her. Maybe he didn't even know about it. But contact had slowly stopped so it didn't really matter. Hoggle knew Sarah had to get on with her life, but why did old tight pants have to rub it in?

"So it's been a while?" the king raised an eyebrow.

"She's got her own life now. And you can't meddle with it!"

"Really?" Hoggle didn't like the sound of that word from him. The Fae was up to something. "Sarah has forgotten us? Maybe we should help her remember again." The king then disappeared with his usual glitter.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Peach?"

Sarah looked up to the fruit Jenny was holding out to her.

"No, thank you."

"Why don't you ever eat peaches?"

"Why do you eat nothing but them?"

"I eat other fruit. I just really like peaches best. Are you sure you don't want one?"

Sarah stared at the fruit. It did look very good. The smell from the others Jenny had put into a peach smoothie was very tantalising. It had been a long time since Sarah had gone near that particular fruit, ever since _that_ peach. But she was Aboveground now. What harm could there be here?

"Sure, why not?" She took the peach and held it for a moment, still hesitant.

"Well, while you contemplate the existential meanings in that peach, I have some errands to run. Need anything at Boots? No? Ok, I'm off. See ya later!" Sarah watched as Jenny gathered her purse and left. She then turned back to the peach.

"You have no power over me," she whispered before taking a bite. As soon as she started chewing she had to rethink those words. Once again, the peach had that strange taste. It took only a few minutes for Sarah to fall from her chair to the ground unconscious.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah was back in the ballroom. Her dress was still white, but the enormous sleeves were gone and thin straps over her shoulders instead. The skirt was more flow than fluff, more feather than glitter. It felt more like a swan and less like a bubble. Having an idea of what was waiting—or rather _who_ was waiting—in the middle of the ballroom, she decided to make him wait and explore the room. Mostly she was exploring the option of how to get out of here without having to meet him again.

She pushed past the still partying courtiers and followed the stairs up and around the room. She finally came to a door way that everyone else seemed to avoid. Perhaps that was where she should go. She walked into the room and found it very different from the other. If the ballroom was a crystal ball, this room was a block of ice. Stairs lead straight down rather than curving around. In the bottom of the tall square room looked to be a tomb of ice. Sarah watched the curling smoke of her breath in the cold room as she descended the stairs.

In the tomb she could just make out the figure of a girl. She could see the closed eyes from the eyelashes and the dark lips of the mouth, but the cuts and lines and inner cracks of the ice distorted the face too much to really see who was sleeping there. She couldn't even be sure of the girl's hair colour through the blue tint.

"Hello Sarah," a voice said behind her.

She turned and faced the Goblin King, still the same as the last time she saw him in this dream world. He was giving her that same smirk, but this time it seemed sad. Maybe it was just the room.

"You have no power over me," she said automatically. But this time she wasn't immediately sent back home.

He laughed. "What's said is _said_. How you've grown! You're quite the young woman now."

"Why am I here? I defeated the Labyrinth already. You shouldn't have been able to touch me."

"And you should have known better than to eat peaches." He leaned towards her and held out a gloved hand. "Dance with me?"

She almost took his hand, but turned away and back to the tomb. "What is this place? It wasn't here when I was here before."

"You didn't look for it before. There is much you didn't see. Would you like me to show you?"

Again she ignored his offered arm. He seemed eager for her to leave, so she wanted to stay. "Who is she?"

The smirk completely dropped as he looked at the tomb. "A trapped bird."

Sarah couldn't find words to ask all she wanted. Nor could she make a joke about Snow White really existing. From his tone and the feel of the room, it didn't feel right. She just stared at the figure, trying to make out any details she could, but the ice was too full of inner scratches and swirls.

"Come away, Sarah."

She turned and looked at his outreach hand. "No."

The room faded abruptly. Sarah opened her eyes and realised she was on the floor of her flat. She quickly threw the rest of the once bitten peach into the bin, trying to ignore the last look of disappointment on the Goblin King's face before the dream ended.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Each night the next week Sarah spent reliving moments of her time in the Labyrinth. Each night Sarah was offered those same words from her last confrontation with the king.

_Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave._

Each night she woke up repeating "you have no power over me." She hoped that it would lessen with time. It only got worse.

The play had a very successful run, but then it came time to switch the casts around and move the show to other places. Sarah decided to stay in London with Jenny. Jenny had gotten the coveted part of Christine in the never-offstage-in-London _Phantom of the Opera_. Sarah was still looking for work, and it wasn't going well.

She couldn't concentrate as the nights in the Labyrinth turned into daydreams and then hallucinations. Every shadow in the corner of her eye was a goblin. And her dreams weren't anything like when she ate the peach. She wasn't actually taking part, only watching things she had done before. She felt as if she had lost control over her dreams.

_But if you turn it this way, and look into it, it will show you your dreams._

"Aaargggh!" Sarah groaned as another memory played out in her head.

"Peach?" Once again Sarah found herself being confronted with her peach-loving roommate.

"It won't help," Sarah grumbled.

"Are you sure?"

"Trust me, I know."

"Is everything all right, Sarah? You've seemed distracted. It's a guy, isn't it?"

"Of sorts, yeah."

"Describe him. It won't help to keep everything locked in a tomb all the time."

"Tall, fair hair that's gone a bit wild-mullet."

"Good mullet, or tragically ugly hockey player mullet?"

"Good. Definitely suits him. Mismatched eyes. An ego the size of Montana."

"I thought that was standard in all guys."

"Well this one's an exception. Maybe it's more the size of all of Canada. I'm trying to get him to return something of mine, something incredibly precious, and he just says, '_Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave._' That ego enough for you?"

"Sounds more like a proposal. Do I know this guy? He sounds a bit familiar."

"No, definitely no."

"So is the ego the only thing wrong?"

"He's cruel and mean and nothing is ever what it seems and…"

"Sounds familiar." Jenny rolled her eyes innocently towards the ceiling, but a hand was pointing at Sarah.

"I am not!"

"Not always, not really, no. But it does seem to come more naturally to you than most people. I've seen the way you handle guys hitting on you; it is decidedly not nice. Anyone less perfect than me wouldn't have put up with some of your moods for so long. Don't let this guy bother you too much. Or let him bother you a lot. I think you should try dating him. Actually see if you like him more than you think you don't. That offer may sound a bit creepy, but in a totally good way—if that makes sense. He sounds like a good match, if he's like what I think he is. Am I making _any_ sense?"

"As much sense as a good looking mullet, actually."

"Great, one of my weird days. I haven't had one of those in a while. I had one between now and the ballet, but I can't recall when. I'm trying to see if there's a pattern. Can't really find one. But you think it over about this guy, and make a decision soon. Move forward. And eat a peach."

"Maybe I'll pass on the peach."

"All right, but I'm leaving it with you anyways. I've got to dash, and all that. You'll be here tonight?"

"Yeah, I'll be here when you get back."

"Then I'll see ya!"

Sarah was once again left alone staring at the evil fruit.

"It's all your fault," she said to it. "If I hadn't thought that you were just a harmless, normal fruit then none of this would have ever happened. I'd have just let the Labyrinth and everything with it go. But no! I have to take one stupid bite and my life is turned upside down!"

_How you've turned my world, you precious thing._

"Arg! See what you've done!"

_You starve and near exhaust me._

"You're the one that's exhausted me! I can't sleep anymore."

_I have reordered time. I have turned the world upside down. And I have done it all for __**you**__! I'm exhausted from living up to all your expectations of me._

The whole scene of that last confrontation replayed in her mind.

_Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave._

"Fine! I give up! Have it your way, Goblin King, or not. We're going to have a talk about all this."

She took a bite of the peach, and it had that same taste again. It took only a few moments for her to be back in the ballroom. Doing things exactly as before she pushed her way back to the room with the ice tomb. The Goblin King was standing there, staring at the tomb with a face Sarah had to describe as painful longing. Just who was this girl?

"We have to talk," she said as she came down the last of the steps.

"Hello Sarah." He faced her and had his usual smirk. "Would you care to come with me to the ballroom?" He held out his hand.

"This has to stop. I can't do anything because I'm too distracted by memories."

"And this is my fault? They are your memories."

"And it was your peach that started all of this!"

He frowned. "Sarah, I had nothing to do with that. Come dance with me."

"You're doing it again! Distracting me! Stop it! I want this all to stop and for things to go back to normal. You don't have any power over me."

"Just as those words have no power to take you home."

"But why is all of this happening? Every time… And what is this place? Who is she?"

"A trapped bird."

"You said that before."

"Come away, Sarah."

Too frustrated to keep arguing, Sarah took his hand.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"I'm back!" Jenny called when she returned to the flat. Not seeing Sarah anywhere she called again. "Sarah? Are you here?"

Jenny looked around the flat. There was no sign of Sarah. There was no note. Nothing. Nothing was missing, her purse and keys still on her desk, Oyster card for the Tube just beside them. Nothing was out of place but a peach with a single bite out of it on the floor next to where Jenny had last seen Sarah sitting.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Something was different the moment Sarah put her hand into the Goblin King's hand. And then the room dissolved into the throne room in the Goblin Castle.

"What just happened?" she demanded, glaring at him and inwardly beating herself for twice falling for his tricks. "How did you bring me here? I'm really here, aren't I? I'm not dreaming."

"No, Sarah. This is no dream." The smirk was back and he draped himself casually onto his throne.

"How? You have no power over me! It's not…" She didn't finish the sentence, but she knew he knew what was unsaid.

"What? Not fair? Oh Sarah, I thought you had grown up."

She then let out a phrase colourful enough to let him know how grown up she was. It only seemed to entertain him more.

"You ate the peach."

"You said you had nothing to do with it. It was just a peach!"

"Not for you. You like myths and legends. I'm sure you've heard about Persephone."

"What do you mean?" She had a feeling this was going to be bad.

"You ate that peach all those years ago. You tied yourself to this kingdom just by coming, then bonding with its creatures. But when you ate its fruit you forged a tie that will not break. I may not have power over you, Sarah, but this Labyrinth does. It only waited to claim you. And as its King, I now rule you."

This was bad.

_Just let me rule you, and you can have everything that you want._

"The offer still stands," he added, knowing what she was remembering.

"How can I leave? How do I go back home? That's what I want."

"You can't, Sarah. The Labyrinth won't let you this time. Is it really all that bad here?"

"My dreams have changed. I'm not a little girl playing with toys and costumes. One day I'll want kids, a family."

"Those things I would gladly give you."

"And just where am I going to find a husband? I'll need that to start."

"I should think that obvious. Marry me, Sarah."

Sarah stood too shocked to think. That had come from nowhere to her.

_Sounds more like a proposal._

That's what Jenny had said. If her brain had been functioning she might have noticed the irony in that she was being plagued by memories from the Aboveground while stuck Underground, rather than the reverse of before.

"I want to go to my room." It was the only thing that would come out coherently. From her tone she left no room for hope of an acceptance of the abrupt proposal. At least, not now.

He nodded and waved for a goblin to show her the way. Sarah left the Goblin King and followed the little creature to her room where she just collapsed on the bed into unconsciousness.

* * *

_Oh dear! Just how much of this _has_ Jareth been responsible for? And just what is up with that roommate Jenny? Explanations await in the coming chapters. Review! _


	3. Why You Don't Eat the Fruit

Sarah slowly woke up, and had a moment of disorientation. She wasn't in her own bed. She didn't hear the usual sounds of Jenny getting up and ready. She looked around from her bed at the foreign room.

It was large and had sand coloured stone walls with tapestries covering most of them. She sat up in the bed and leaned to look out the very tall open doors leading to a balcony. The sun was shining over twists of brown stone and green hedges.

"Son of a…"

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Bilgerat!" Jareth called imperiously to a goblin attempting to pull a few tail feathers from a chicken. "Send Crei'Tun to wake the Lady Sarah. And then have Weez and Muck deliver this letter to Lord Vandeele of Alfheim."

"Yessir, your worshipful highness!" The almost mostly reliable goblin gave a salute and with one last kick to the chicken scampered off to do his duty.

Normally the Goblin King might have smirked at the goblin's antics, but today he was in no mood to be amused. In his castle was the object of his desires… and on who all hope rested.

He could only hope that she wouldn't make things too difficult.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Good mornings, my lady," said a goblin in a dress that looked more like a Barbie ruffled miniskirt placed on a Troll. The goblin's short hair even stuck up in a triangle shape. "My's name is Crei'Tun, and his royally worshipfulness has made me your maid."

"How kind of his royally painful-in-the-buttock-ness," Sarah mumbled, but the small goblin heard and started cackling gleefully.

"I's is liking you, miss ladyness. Nows we must get you a bath and then you can get dressed and eat your breakfast. After that the painfully royalness wants to sees you."

"I bet he does," Sarah said as she tossed back the covers and got out of bed.

Despite looking rather rustic and rundown Medieval, the castle—or at least her room of it—was fitted with luxurious comforts. The bath had a Roman influence and the water came from a natural hot spring. Further investigation of the bathroom revealed that all the plumbing was of Roman design; Sarah praised the gods the Romans had a working toilet system of sorts—chamber pots weren't her style.

A wardrobe had been fully furnished for her. She knew she shouldn't have been surprised to find only dresses and skirts. Luckily not all required a corset and only a few looked like a bubble. _That_ first bubble dress was far in the back. Also among the many colours was the other white dream ball gown. Sarah decided on a simple dark blue broomstick skirt and white poet's shirt—it was an outfit that she most likely would have worn back home and gave her the confidence she needed to face his royal fathead. Tying her hair back Sarah followed Crei'Tun to meet said fathead.

She was ushered into a large study, books and papers filling the shelves carved into the walls. There was a fireplace covered with a labyrinth-designed screen and a couple of large comfortable looking chairs. Everything was neat but in a cluttered, homey sort of way. Behind the large wood desk sat his nibs himself.

"Ah, Sarah," he greeted, still smirking. "How are you enjoying my castle?"

"It's a prison. Am I supposed to enjoy that?"

"Prison? You are free to go where you please in the castle or anywhere in the Labyrinth. I'm sure you'd love to see those friends of yours. But I'd recommend not exploring the oubliettes. We wouldn't want you stuck in one of _those_ prisons."

Sarah just stared at him with a confused expression.

He sighed. "Sarah, contrary to what you believe I am not the enemy. It is not my fault that you are to live here now. That was between you and the Labyrinth. But I will not lie and say I am not happy you are here."

"But I beat you. I thought you'd hate me, or want revenge."

He laughed. "Oh you precious thing! I was disappointed you did not accept my offer, but you were so young then. I was pleased you showed strength enough to win. A queen needs that courage and determination."

"A queen? You really were serious?"

"You doubted me?" The smile was now gone. "You may go where you like, but you shall take supper with me each night. I have a guest coming to stay. The court librarian can instruct you on manners and customs should you wish not to embarrass yourself and appear a complete simpleton."

"Why you…" Sarah muttered a stream of curses as she turned and stormed out of the room. "I'll show that no good, tights wearing faerie who the simpleton is."

Crei'Tun appeared at her side. "Is the ladyship needing anything?"

Sarah stopped walking. "Yes. Could you invite Hoggle, Sir Didymus, and Ludo to meet me here at the castle? Let me know when they come. And could you show me to the library?"

The goblin giggled, nodded, and yelled at a couple of goblins to get Sarah's friends. She then skipped and scampered while Sarah followed her to the library. It was similar to the study, but larger and with more stacks of books—many leaning precariously and slightly swaying—and the sliding ladders so often found in old libraries. There was the random sock poking out from a book or draped on a shelf. Though not a complete mess it could definitely have done with a thorough clean and reorganization.

Sarah started to explore the titles on the books; for every one in English there were at least a dozen in a variety of others. As she browsed she noticed a mass of something coming down a ladder. It was a goblin with a massive coat, a long beard, a helmet with an ox's horns, and a patch over one eye.

"Excuse me," Sarah said politely. "I'm looking for the court librarian."

"You've found him," he grumbled, not looking up from the book he had just retrieved. "I'm Bregg the poet and court librarian. What do you want?"

"The King said that you could teach me about the manners and customs of his kingdom."

The goblin finally looked up at her. He squinted his one eye and then it widened.

"You're _her_. You're the one." He didn't sound too happy.

"I'm Sarah. I don't know what you've heard, but…"

"I haven't heard enough, that's what! How am I supposed to make a proper record of the Labyrinth when his highness won't say a word about it? Those friends of yours were even more tight-lipped. At least that was out of loyalty. Then the rest of those dratted goblins couldn't put together a credible story. Halfwits, the lot of them! Once in a century or two you get one with some sense, just look at me. But in the meantime the kingdom is filled with those brainless rascals!"

"If you teach me I could tell you what happened," Sarah offered. "My friends are coming, so together maybe we could give you the whole story."

Bregg narrowed his eye again. Then he cackled, sounding like any other goblin. "Deal, my lady."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Hoggle was furious. A goblin had just come with a summons to the castle to see Sarah. So that's what old tight pants had been up to when he was asking his questions. He had wanted to trick Sarah into coming back.

When he found Sarah in the castle he hadn't expected it would be in the library with that boring no good poet teaching her Labyrinth court etiquette.

"So he's got you back, has he?" Hoggle grumbled.

Sarah ran over and hugged him. "Oh Hoggle! I've missed you."

"You had your life to get on with, and now you're stuck here. Aren't you lookin' for a way home again?"

"Oh, I guess I had forgotten that while talking with Bregg."

"Perhaps not forgotten," Bregg said.

"What does that mean, you old grease pot?" Hoggle demanded.

"I could elaborate further if I had the whole story." Nothing was so odd as a goblin using the word 'elaborate'.

Hoggle grumbled, but soon was butting into Sarah's eager narrative with his own opinions—especially when it came to the royal feather pants. Ludo and Sir Didymus also came and were welcomed, and they added their parts to the story. Then Sarah added the reason for her return: the peach, the dreams, and then accepting the King's arm and being transported to the Underground. The four waited for Bregg's reaction and analysis.

"So his highness says it was the peach that brought you back, like Persephone and the pomegranate. But only the second time?"

"And I do want to go home, but…"

"You're starting to feel like this is home?" Bregg put in. "Well, it is. The King may use tricks and cheat, but this is genuine. You tied yourself here. Here is home and the more you stay the more you'll feel that."

"How do you know?" Hoggle asked.

"It's happened before, over in the Kingdom of the Seven Giants just four decades ago. A mortal found her way there, ate the fruit, and then could never leave. It's usually the only reason mortals stay here. The food from the land binds you to the land. And you did have a choice."

"What do you mean?"

"The first time you ate a peach you didn't come here. You refused, I gather? And then the second time you let the King bring you here."

"I didn't know that's what he was going to do! So I'm really stuck here?"

"Yes, Lady Sarah. But you are most fortunate that the King allows you to stay in the castle."

Hoggle gave an hmph of disapproval.

Sarah just smirked. "I may be stuck, and it may feel like home, but that doesn't mean I have to be nice to him."

The three friends nodded in agreement, but Bregg frowned disapprovingly.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Your majesty," a goblin said while rushing into the throne room where the king sat idly on his throne.

"What is it?"

"Lord Vandeele has arrived."

"So soon?" Jareth stood and went out to welcome his friend.

"Jareth, you rat!" A tall, dark haired Fae called as he saw the Goblin King come into the entry hall.

"Vandeele," the King called back. "I never expected you so soon."

"Well, so long without a summons from you, I was anxious to see how my old friend was. Still kicking these goblins?"

"Naturally." The two walked to Jareth's study.

"Why have you invited me so suddenly?" Vandeele asked while taking a seat in the study. "Amneris still taking her revenge for her rejected advances?"

"Yes, and that is why you are here. I need a witness."

"A witness for what exactly?"

"That I've found a woman as cruel as myself."

"Really? A woman to break the curse? And you want a second opinion to back up your judgement?"

"This solution cannot fail. Amneris will do her best to stop it however she can."

"So who is this mystery woman cruel enough to match you?"

"Sarah."

Vandeele's eyes widened. "Not THE Sarah? But you said she turned you down. She's back? How did that happen?"

"She ate a peach on her first visit, and so the Labyrinth has brought her back."

"With a little encouragement from its King no doubt."

"No doubt," Jareth said innocently. There was nothing truly innocent about him.

"But will she marry you? Does she even know about the curse?"

"Not yet. There is nothing that says she cannot know. But first I need you to see that she can be cruel. That is very clearly laid out in the curse."

"Of course, and we'll leave that bit out if she finds out. We don't want anyone saying it was just an act to help you. So I'm guessing I'll meet her at dinner."

"Naturally."

* * *

_Yes, I know that according to Brian Froud that Bregg is supposed to smell really bad, but I just left that bit out because I love the image of him waddling around the library. So just assume the King was kind enough to fix Bregg's stench problem. More answers to all of Sarah's questions still to come. _


	4. Owl in the Ice

Sarah considered not changing for supper, but decided against it. He might think that it was due to her ignorance. It would be much more fun to play by the rules for a short while and then pull the switch. That would show it as a deliberate act rather than an oversight.

She pulled out a dark green gown that looked good with her hair left down and then had Crei'Tun show her to the dining room. She was informed that it was the informal dining room used for when the King wasn't entertaining. There was a rarely used formal banquet hall for that.

Sarah walked into the room and was surprised to find the King was not alone. A tall handsome man with dark hair—and obviously not of human origin—was standing by the fire with Jareth.

"Ah," Jareth said when he saw her. "Lady Sarah, allow me to introduce Lord Vandeele of Alfheim. Vandeele, this is the woman I was telling you about."

Sarah gave a small curtsy to the lord. "My lord."

"It is always a pleasure to meet a lady of such talents that she could beat this old cheat at his own game."

She noticed how Jareth was stiffening at the way Lord Vandeele held her hand and kissed it. _Let the games begin, Goblin King_. She smiled and hooked her arm in Vandeele's and let him lead her to the table. "And it is a pleasure to meet another so keenly aware of his majesty's lack of _fair_ness."

Throughout the dinner Sarah put forward her best flirting with the visiting lord. He flirted right back. Jareth was often left out of the discussion as Sarah kept the subject to the lord and his country. She would often drop a remark belittling the Goblin Kingdom and over praising Alfheim from Vandeele's descriptions. But before the Goblin King could defend his kingdom she moved the conversation forward and left him behind, the King glaring fiercely at his dinner guests and his plate. When dinner was cleared, Sarah excused herself with one last flirtatious look at Vandeele and left the room.

Vandeele waited for Jareth's temper to break loose.

"That _hussy_!" Jareth yelled as he threw a pewter goblet into the fire. It merely bounced off the side and rolled under the table.

"I wouldn't really go _that_ far," Vandeele said, not able to resist teasing his friend a little more. "She was just being pleasant."

"Pleasant? Just pleasant? If that was just pleasant then I would hate to see what flirting looks like."

"Only if she was flirting with any other male than yourself, you mean."

"She's _mine_, Vandeele! Mine!"

"If you think I am stupid enough to come between you, then you are very much mistaken. The girl was clearly doing it on purpose to annoy you. And on the bright side, after only one meal I may be able to fully concur that she is as cruel as you. She not only made you jealous, but she also repeatedly, not-so-subtly, insulted your kingdom."

"Don't remind me."

"All in all, I think it was a highly successful evening. I've been flattered by a pretty lady and am well on my way to witnessing the key part for the curse's end. Now we just need to get the girl to marry you."

"That may be impossible," Jareth sighed.

"Don't tell me that the mighty Goblin King is to be beaten twice by a mere mortal girl! I'll help you any way I can. You still have a little time."

"But anything could happen to her! Do you know how perilous the Aboveground is?"

"I have some notion. But it doesn't help to worry about it. Jehanna will be fine for a little longer. I'll try my hand at matchmaker and we'll see if we can't have you married by the next moon. Now if you will excuse me, I think I'll retire for the night."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

After a bath and breakfast in her room, Sarah started to explore the castle. She poked her head in empty bedchambers and around corners to long dark passages. The castle seemed just as much a maze as the walls outside the Goblin City. Eventually she came to a long gallery with windows over looking the kingdom on one side and portraits on the other. She passed painting and tapestries depicting battles, portraits of kings—Fae, elf, dwarf, and faerie. Towards one side she came across a painting that froze her in front of it. There on the wall in a large and very ornate gold frame was the Goblin King, and next to him was a young girl with light brown curls. There was something familiar about the face that she couldn't place.

"I see you've found his majesty's portrait."

She turned away from the painting and curtsied. "Lord Vandeele."

"Please, call me Vand. And dispense with the bowing and such. I know you are new to our realms. It must be overwhelming for you."

"Not as much as you'd think. I have been here before."

"But how many of our secrets did you really see? There are many."

"All right. Maybe you can tell me one. Who is she?" She pointed to the girl beside Jareth in the portrait.

"That is the Princess Jehanna, the King's sister."

"He has a sister?" Sarah's eyes were wide with disbelief. But that would explain why she looked familiar. There was a slight resemblance, but the girl's features were much softer and rounder than her brother's.

"Yes, she'd be about the Fae equivalent to a teenaged younger sister."

"Where is she now? Will I meet her?"

"Perhaps these are questions better put to the King himself."

Sarah nodded, thinking there might be some argument in the family or something. Vand did, however, entertain her with stories of the other paintings as they walked down the gallery together and out to the castle gardens.

"I have some of my own questions for you, Sarah. How ever did you beat that old skunk at his game? I've heard his version, but I'd be delighted to hear it in full from you—not just the snippets I got last night."

Once again Sarah found herself describing her journey through the Labyrinth. It went much quicker without all the interruptions from her friends.

"So what do you think of the King?" the lord asked when she had finished her tale.

"Besides the obvious?"

"Yes, and no. Even the obvious. I've known him for so long that I'd like to hear an outsider's perspective, especially yours, all things considered."

"He's cruel, manipulative, completely unfair, a cheat, a liar, and a total bastard. He's all smirks and 'the Labyrinth brought you here, I had nothing to do with it,' but I know that's a lie. He just left things out so I would walk into my own trap. I spent half of last night working that out in my head. He's all riddles and puzzles. Nothing is just a straight line with him."

"Well, he is king of the Labyrinth."

"Yeah, a baby-stealing, criminally-too-tight pants wearing piece of sh…"

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"She really said all that about me?" Jareth raised an eyebrow at Vand's report.

"She really doesn't like you. And for so pretty a lady has the mouth of a sailor."

Jareth chuckled darkly. "That part is new with her added years."

"How you are going to get her to trust you enough to marry you, I don't know. But it should be fun to watch. I've heard the line between love and hate is very thin, so let us hope that it is true. By the by, she's asked about the portrait of you and Jehanna."

"What did you tell her?"

"That she was your sister and that it was all for you to explain. I'd do that soon; it may make a start to earning that trust. Just tell her the whole truth. A good sob story to start the pity…"

"I don't want her pity."

"Well, it would be a start in the right direction for you."

"Just keep an eye on her and make certain that she can break the curse."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jareth walked into the ice room, hoping that being near his sister's immortal body, empty and locked in ice as it was, would help him think clearly. Instead he found Sarah staring at the tomb again.

"I believe we are making this a habit," he said as she spun around to face him.

"Then we should keep with the habit. Who is she?"

"A trapped bird." Sarah rolled her eyes with a huff, but before she could say anything he continued. "She is a princess locked in ice due to a curse from a woman who even in your eyes would make me look as kind as Father Christmas."

"Your sister?" Sarah guessed.

"Yes, this is my sister Jehanna. Or at least this is her Fae body. Her soul is currently trapped in a mortal body Aboveground where I cannot find it. If the curse is not broken before that mortal body dies, then she is gone forever. My dearest little sister." He let some of the emotions of her loss show as he looked at her tomb.

From the softening of Sarah's features, Vand might have been right about using the truth and pity.

"Can you break the curse?"

"Yes, eventually I will. I must, and at a cost that will not give pleasure to the one who did this."

"How?"

"I think that is enough questions for now," he warned. "Come, let us leave my sister to her sleep."

"I'm not going anywhere with you again." She stubbornly crossed her arms. "Especially when there's a lot you aren't telling me."

So much for that plan. "Sarah, I wish to take my thoughts away from here. Will you not help me?"

"No, I will not."

"Just let me walk with you to the door."

"I don't think so."

They stood for several minutes just staring at each other.

"I'm not leaving so you might as well take your royal behind out of here," she finally said.

With one last glare at her, the Goblin King climbed the staircase and left her behind in the room.

"Well?" he asked Vand who had been standing out of sight to see the conversation between them. Vand was an expert at following people unnoticed.

"Aside from feeling a complete fool watching you, yes, that was rather cruel. Understandable behaviour, but after telling her about Jehanna like that and not being kind enough to at least just walk with you to the door… Cruel might well describe it. That still doesn't help with getting her to marry you."

"All in good time."

"I thought that's what you said we didn't have." But the words fell on deaf ears.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Hoggle, what can you tell me about the Princess Jehanna?" Sarah was sitting outside the Labyrinth gates with Sir Didymus while Hoggle was spraying faeries. Ludo hadn't been able to join them.

"Why woulds you be asking about her?"

"Just curious." And she couldn't get the portrait of the tomb out of her head.

"She was a fair young maiden, my lady," Didymus said. "Just an innocent and happy child under her brother's care."

"How was she cursed? Why? Who would do that?"

"Amneris is what did it," Hoggle said. "She's wickeder than even that damn Jareth."

"Queen Amneris rules the Shadow Lands and is the Queen of Nightmares," Didymus added.

"She's wanted Jareth for a long time, and when he turned her down she went and found a way to get revenge using his sister."

"Hoggle, you almost sound sorry for him."

"It's not Jareth I'm sorry for. It's his sister. You would have liked her."

"And she you," Didymus said.

"But the curse can be broken, can't it?" Sarah asked, thinking back on Jareth's determined words.

"It doesn't look likely," Didymus answered sadly. "The curse can only be broken when the King marries a woman as cruel as himself."

"And those no good Fae decided centuries ago to get rid of cruelty in their women. Just look at the problems Amneris is causing."

"But they couldn't just decide to get rid of cruelty!" Sarah protested.

"Thems may not be nice all the time, but rules are just so that no woman could be as cruel as that Jareth."

"Yes," Didymus agreed with Hoggle. "There are still jealousies and plots, but nothing as are comparable with his majesty. Queen Amneris used the clause in the curse so that the King would have to marry her to save the princess."

Sarah's thoughts started to whirl in her head. "Does the curse say it has to be a Fae woman that marries the King?"

The two seemed to think it over. "Um… no?" Didymus said.

"What are you thinking of?" Hoggle asked her.

"Nothing yet. I'll let you know when I know myself."

* * *

_What is she thinking? You can probably guess, but I like to have a bit of mystery here and there. Check out my deviantART for a picture of Jehanna (link on my profile).  
_


	5. Guilt, Pity, and Peaches

Sarah was quiet during dinner that night. Vand and Jareth talked quietly every now and then, but both marked Sarah's sudden silence. She finally spoke when the last course before dessert was being cleared away.

"What was your sister like?"

Jareth raised his eyebrows, but Vand made a small motion with his head to speak.

"She was very young. Just over a century in age."

"A century? As in over one hundred years old?"

"In Fae years it made her what you would call a teenager. I think the equivalent would be around fourteen."

"Did she live here, or with… your parents?" Jareth could see she had difficulty with the idea that he had parents.

"She lived with me. Our mother was not our father's wife, so our father thought it best that I be my sister's guardian."

"Then you must feel awful." The words just slipped from her mouth, and she quickly threw a hand over her lips as if to take back the words. Vand was still silent, but he was listening and watching Sarah's every reaction.

Jareth knew she didn't mean what she said to be so hurtful, but it stung nonetheless. "Yes, I failed in my duty to her." He spoke the unspoken feeling of her loose comment.

Though dessert was being brought in, Jareth threw his napkin on the table and left the room.

"I didn't mean to say that," Sarah said pitifully.

"We know, Sarah. But you've rubbed salt into a very painful wound."

Vand watched as Sarah left without touching her dessert. He looked at his own plate and decided he had no sweet tooth that night. Leaving the room he passed a group of goblins.

"There are three plates of untouched dessert in there. I suggest you hurry."

The goblins it seemed would be the only ones having a good night.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah paced on her balcony, clutching her thick robe around her. The nights were slowly getting colder. She thought about Toby and how she had promised to bring him a special Paddington Bear for Christmas. She felt a deep pain as it finally sunk in that she would never see her brother or parents again.

Once again her mind was creating an unusual and rather colourful list of adjectives for the Goblin King. She didn't care that it was all partly her fault as well. It just wasn't fair.

"But that's the way it is," she muttered, finding no comfort from those words this time.

Her pain at the loss of her family only led her thoughts right back to her huge mistake at dinner. Did Jareth feel the same about his sister as Sarah did about Toby? She wasn't totally lost yet, but everyone's hope seemed to be running out.

Then she remembered the King's proposal when she arrived. She was just as cruel as he was, and they both knew it.

_Your eyes can be so cruel… just as I can be so cruel_.

So that's why she was here, why Jareth had helped the Labyrinth bring her here. The night before she had come to the conclusion that though the peach tied her to the Labyrinth, the dreams and hallucinations not peach induced could have come from Jareth to drive her to do something rash.

"And it worked, that rat! I had to go and eat that second peach."

She heard a screech and saw the white shape of an owl in the moonlight flying from the Labyrinth back to the castle.

"I could save his sister," she finally admitted out loud. "But why should I? I've never even met her! Why should I do anything to help that bastard? He's done nothing but make my life a misery. Why should I help him end his pain when he's caused me most of mine?"

_I'm exhausted from living up to all your expectations of me._

"Well you're not the only one," she argued with the memory. "And now you want me to marry you because you think I'm cruel! Way to win a girl's heart, Kingy. You want your sister back so you find some convenient girl, drag her away from her family, and then call her a heartless b…"

Birds suddenly squawked in the gardens bellow. A group of goblins had formed to run amuck chasing chickens through the gardens.

She tried to be angry at the interruption, but instead she watched them fondly. The goblins were starting to grow on her. She was sure it was all due to being tied to the Labyrinth.

"Aaaarrgghh!" she screamed at the moon.

_Peach?_ That's what Jenny had offered when Sarah last voiced her frustration.

"Thanks a lot, Jenny," Sarah muttered. "I should really be blaming you for all of this."

_You've seemed distracted. It's a guy, isn't it?_

"Don't even get me started about that… guy."

_Don't let this guy bother you too much. Or let him bother you a lot. I think you should try dating him. Actually see if you like him more than you think you don't. That offer may sound a bit creepy, but in a totally good way—if that makes sense. He sounds like a good match, if he's like what I think he is. Am I making any sense?_

"No, you actually aren't making any sense. You don't know him. He only wants to use me. He says I'm cruel."

_Not always, not really, no. But it does seem to come more naturally to you than most people. I've seen the way you handle guys hitting on you; it is decidedly not nice._

"All right, so I'm a bit cruel. But that still doesn't mean I should accept his offer."

_But you think it over about this guy, and make a decision soon. Move forward._

"Great. My own memory of you is telling me to do it. You're supposed to be on my side, you traitor!" She continued pacing. "Fine! I'll think it over. It's not like I have much left to lose."

_And eat a peach._

"Don't _even_ start that again."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Somehow Sarah was able to sleep and feel rested the next morning. She didn't feel any better, but at least she wasn't exhausted. She decided she didn't want to see anyone, so she ran to the library and started going through the books.

Bregg was working on a new poem, so only sounds came from the turn of a page or Bregg's occasional grumbles and mumbles. He seemed to notice Sarah's dark mood; he never spoke to her, but he made sure that there was lunch enough for the two of them brought to the library.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jareth walked up and down the halls of his castle, not paying any heed to where he was going. His flights in owl form usually calmed him, but lasts night's flight did nothing. If anything it only made him feel more miserable. He kept thinking about Jehanna.

Sarah wasn't wrong. He did feel miserable, and worse that he had failed his sister. The whole thing was his fault. As night had turned to dawn a new painful feeling settled over him: guilt for upsetting Sarah. His abrupt departure no doubt was making her miserable. In fact, he had done very little to make the girl happy.

As he spent the morning wandering through his castle he kept hoping that he would run into Sarah. He wanted to apologise. It wasn't a feeling he was used to, and he just wanted to get rid of the new found guilt.

By mid afternoon he gave up hope of just meeting by chance and ordered a goblin to find her. The creature soon returned to say that she was in the library. He walked quickly to that room of the castle. He opened the door and only saw Bregg.

"Where is the Lady Sarah?" Jareth demanded.

Bregg looked over back behind a stack of leaning books. Slowly Jareth saw the girl stand come out from her hiding spot.

"Your majesty," she curtsied.

"Have you been in here all day?"

"Yes, sire."

"Come. You need some fresh air. You look pale." He turned without waiting to see if she would come. He waited a little ways down the hall. He breathed a sigh of relief when Sarah exited the library and walked towards him. The last thing he needed was to have to fight one of Sarah's stubborn moods.

They walked in silence until they reach the gardens. He led Sarah to a small courtyard garden hidden off to the side of the main walks. It had rose bushes, potted peach trees, and stone benches along the stone-paved paths. A small fountain stood in the middle.

"The was Jehanna's garden. She planted many of these roses herself." Sarah looked uncomfortable at the mention of his sister, but he continued. "She loved that mortal book about a hidden garden. I can't remember the title."

"_The Secret Garden_?" Sarah suggested.

"Yes, that was it. She'd probably be mad as fiereys to find out that I haven't boarded this garden up and hidden the key."

"I'm really sorry about what I said last night, Jareth," Sarah said. "Was that you flying over the Labyrinth?"

"Yes, I was trying to clear my head. All I could think about was taking Jehanna on her first flight. She too could change into an owl. If before keeping an eye on her was difficult, after was downright impossible. The little brat loved flying."

"I know how you must feel."

"Do you?" He could feel his temper boiling. "What do you know of it, little girl?"

"Only that knowing for a certainty—not an 'if I fail'—that I will never see my brother again is tearing my insides to shreds. Or did you forget, Jareth? I have a family, a little brother only six years old that I never got to say goodbye to. Do you remember how hard I fought for him? I'll never see any of them, and they will die never knowing what happened to me." While her anger flared his started to die.

"I'm sorry."

"What?" She looked at him in complete shock.

"I'm sorry that you were taken from your family. You do know then what I feel." He leaned against a stone wall while Sarah sat on a bench. "Were you able to sleep well last night?"

"Well enough."

"Good. I should not have just run off."

"You had every right to. You're king."

He just nodded, not quite sure how to proceed.

"Then we will go on as if it had not happened."

"Jareth, you could reorder time and we still wouldn't be able to do that." There was another moment of silence. "How was she cursed? I know who did it, and mostly why, but how was she able to curse _your_ sister?"

"You've heard that it was the Queen of Nightmares? When Jehanna flew too close to the borders of my realm Amneris was able to start a spell. Jehanna was just within reach and in a vulnerable state in her owl form. Once that initial net was set, Amneris was able to access Jehanna's dreams, turn them to nightmares, and then while Jehanna was at her weakest place the curse. I had no power to stop it; the hold of the net was too strong. I could only watch my sister's agony as the nightmares grew worse and worse until there was nothing."

"I'm sorry."

"And now I can't even see what her mortal life is like. Amneris made extra certain I could not just bring Jehanna Underground if only for the prolonged life a mortal would have here."

"Prolonged life?"

"Yes, Sarah. While you live here you will enjoy a life centuries long."

"But eventually I will die?"

"So many questions."

"So few answers. And I can't take anything for granted, remember?"

"At least you have learned that lesson." A clock in the castle chimed the hour. "Come Sarah. Dinner will soon be served."

"And you'll need a while to change your clothes for the fourth time today."

Jareth chuckled. "Not quite so many changes as that. Not _today_ at least." He started walking back, but before he left his sister's garden Sarah called out, still standing by the bench.

"Jareth, I've changed my mind."

"About what?" he asked while standing at the garden's entrance.

"I want to marry you."

* * *

_Evil cliffhanger, mwahaha. But never fear, I'll put the next chapter up soon. And I suppose I should put a disclaimer that the principle characters are not of my creation, but if you didn't know that they are from a Jim Henson film then I don't really see why you are reading this, and in general why put a disclaimer when the story is posted on a FANfiction website. Isn't the "owned by someone else" just generally implied? Well, enough ranting. More shall come soon! (Story, not the ranting...... but no guarentees)  
_


	6. Mawwage

_Sorry for the wait. I did mean to get this up sooner, but my internet has been a total butt the last few days.  
_

* * *

"I've changed my mind," Sarah said.

"About what?" he asked while standing at the garden's entrance.

"I want to marry you."

"You…" He couldn't finish the thought.

"You marry someone as cruel as you are and the curse is broken, right?"

He walked back towards her. "Is that why you want to marry me? Just to end the curse?"

"It will work, won't it?"

"It should, but I am not one hundred percent certain. The High King must be consulted."

"Then consult him. I want to marry you." She sounded just as she did when she told the door knockers that she wanted to knock during her run through the Labyrinth.

"Sarah…" This all felt wrong to him.

"I've made up my mind. Or has the offer expired?" She waited for an answer, but he could give no answer. "Do you want to marry me?"

"Yes, Sarah, but…"

"There's no but, Jareth," she interrupted. "Let's get married. It's no use both of us longing for a lost sibling."

She started walking away, but he grabbed her arm and pulled her to him. "I _will_ let you say goodbye. You will be able to look in on them from time to time, but you will not age as they will. I swear I will do everything I can for your family."

"Thank you, Jareth," she said softly.

He held out her arm and she obediently took it and let him walk her back to her room in the castle.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"She what?" Vand shouted. He and Jareth were in the dining room and Sarah had yet to join them.

"She has _volunteered_ to marry me."

"I think you'll have to say that again."

"She approached me with her acceptance. I never expected…"

"No, I thought for sure that I'd have to help clean up the damage from one of your tricks before she finally agreed. But she really just came up to you and said she'll do it."

"It doesn't feel right. She's just sacrificing herself, playing the hero again."

"And you love her?"

"Yes! She's my equal."

"I'd say superior in this case. Sacrificing herself on behalf of a person she's never known."

"It shouldn't be a sacrifice! I'm considering if I should turn her down."

Vand stared at Jareth as if the King had grown another head. "I was wrong. You are equals—equally stupid. Marry her, break the curse, and you can woo her love later. This simplifies things. Have you thought what Amneris is going to do when she finds out? You know she'll do all she can to take Jehanna down if she finds out it has all been for nothing."

"Then I suggest you go to the High King, give your witness, and give him my personal request that he officiate a secret wedding between Sarah and me."

"Yes, sire," Vand said with resignation. As he left Sarah came in.

"Isn't Vand joining us?" she asked.

"No, he has to go take the news to the High King."

"Right now?"

"Speed and secrecy are necessary. If Amneris found out what we are doing, Jehanna would no longer be safe from her. I wouldn't even tell your friends of it for now. They can come to the ceremony if you wish. Or you could have a second public ceremony later. Are you having second thoughts?"

"No." She smoothed her napkin, looking at anything but him. "Is the ceremony enough, or will it need to be consummated?"

Gods, he hadn't even thought of that. It wasn't said in the curse specifically, but knowing Amneris it probably was an unspoken clause—marriage in its entirety and all that. "I don't know. Sarah, are you sure you want to do this?"

She finally looked at him. "Didn't you want this?"

"What I wanted was for you to be happy! Happy with me preferably. I have moved the stars for you, and will do so again if you ask it of me."

"So long as I stay here," she muttered, but he heard it clearly.

"I am afraid that is beyond my control now. But yes, as long as you stay here anything you want is yours."

"Then I want to stop arguing over this. I've said I'll marry you, and I will. End of story."

'No, Sarah,' he thought. 'It's only the beginning.'

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah wished she hadn't brought up the idea about consummating the marriage. Things were bad enough without that.

She was no longer sure what the Goblin King was up to. She thought he was just using her, but then he was the one who seemed hesitant to go through with it. Just want did he want?

_Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave._

Fear me—being the Goblin King did require some fear. He stole babies after all. From her reading in the library, Fae kings were absolute monarchs over their lands and only subject to the will of the High King. So again, the fear of one's subjects was a part of the job. She'd read enough Machiavelli to understand the constant struggle of a ruler over whether it was better to be feared or loved.

That brought her to 'love me'—she had to leave that one alone for now.

Do as I say—just another part of being an absolute monarch. Oddly enough, that didn't bother her. After her first trip through the Labyrinth she had turned from fantasy to historical fiction. Her imagination was filled with enough facts and romantic ideas about the absolute monarchs of England that the idea of no democracy didn't bother her as it might do others. Jareth didn't actually seem too much of a wicked tyrant anyways.

Love me and I will be your slave—the two parts she didn't know what to do with. Why did he want her love? Why would a man with every right to be a tyrant offer to be a slave? To a mere mortal girl at that? The answer was in her mind somewhere, but she didn't want to face it. She pushed it aside.

"What's said is said," she spoke to the waning moon. "Even if it takes me to the Goblin King's bed."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

The High King looked long and hard at Lord Vandeele. He knew the lord from the elf lands was his son's most trusted friend—one of the boy's only friends in fact.

"Are you sure that she meets the requirements? I couldn't stop Amneris or her curse myself, but I want my daughter safe. You are absolutely sure?"

"Yes, your majesty. She is Jareth's match in everything, including cruelty. And it was she that bested the Labyrinth just a few mortal years ago."

"So it's _her_." The High King thought it over. "Return to the Goblin Kingdom. The only time soon that I can slip away unnoticed is tomorrow evening. Make sure he posts guards where the princess rests so that we know this works… and so it doesn't happen again."

"Of course, your majesty." Vand bowed and left after the High King waved his hand in dismissal.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Though it was a technical breach of protocol, Vand went to inform Sarah first. When she opened her chamber door, even dressed in a thick dressing robe, she looked every bit the perfect queen.

"My lady," he bowed. "The High King will be coming tomorrow evening."

She didn't protest that it was too soon, but he could see the thought briefly written on her face. But she controlled her features and nodded.

"Thank you for coming and telling me."

"Good night, my lady."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jareth did protest that it was too soon.

"I know we must act quickly, but tomorrow?"

"It was the only time he could slip away unnoticed. Amneris may not be _constantly_ watching you, but the High King is very easy to watch at every moment. If it were to be known that he was coming, she'd know exactly what was going on and kill Jehanna before the ceremony was finished."

"I know, I know. I just wish Sarah had more time."

"I took the liberty of informing her first. She seemed rather calm and accepting. She'll make a wonderful queen."

"Of course she will. I'd take no other."

"Does _she_ know that?"

"Of course she does." But Jareth didn't sound too sure.

"I'd tell her again if I were you. And keep telling her until she believes it. Shall we at least have a drink to celebrate your last night being a free man?"

"No, we'll drink to the happiness of the future queen."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

In some ways Sarah wished Vand had never told her. She stayed awake over half the night, and the rest was spent tossing and turning. Sometime after dawn her body finally succumbed to exhaustion. Crei'Tun had been watching her mistress and let her sleep until lunch.

Even that sleep wasn't very restful. She kept dreaming that she was Buttercup in _The Princess Bride_, but Jareth wasn't the prince. It was the actor that had played Jonathon in Dracula. She stood by him, unable to speak or move, while the priest went on and on about 'mawwage'. Right when he pronounced them man and wife, Sarah regained control and ran out of the chapel. She ran to her room and found Jareth lying on the bed in one of his own outfits, but it was still a bit like the costume for the Dread Pirate Roberts. He then gave the little speech on how it isn't truly marriage if you don't say "I do", and then at the end added that damned line of his about fearing and loving him. When there was a sound at the door that should have been the prince bursting in, she woke up. Each time she fell back asleep she had the exact same dream all over again.

When Sarah finally got out of bed she bathed and looked at her wardrobe. Jareth had offered to have a big production of a wedding after the curse was broken, but Sarah didn't care to go through this nightmare twice. Pulling out the swan-like gown she got ready to greet her waiting fate.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Thank you for coming, Father," Jareth greeted the High King with a bow.

"Anything for my daughter," the Fae king said coldly. "After this works do try to keep her safe."

If Jareth was hurt by his father's word he didn't let it show. He motioned for Sarah to step forward from her place next to Vandeele.

"Father, this is the Lady Sarah, my bride."

The High King stood staring at her, taking her measure. She stared right back. He was taller than his son, and had darker hair that hung long and straight. The nose and mouth were somewhat similar, but Jareth apparently inherited most of his looks from his mother. This man's features were more round and subtle.

"I thought you said this girl was mortal," the High King said at last.

Sarah's eyes widened and she looked at Jareth, but he looked just as surprised as she did.

"She is, Father," Jareth said.

"Maybe she was before, but can't you see it? She's changing into a Fae. It will take some time for the change to be complete, but she is no longer human." Sarah still looked to Jareth. His face clearly said that they would discuss it in detail later. "My time here is short. Shall we begin?"

Sarah wished she had gotten more sleep. As it was, her head was so full of fluff, images from that dream, and the new idea that she was becoming a Fae that she wasn't able to retain much memory of the Fae wedding ceremony. Her three loyal friends were there, but all were silent in the presence of the High King—and no goblin would be in the same room as him. She was glad not to have to deal with Hoggle's opinions of it all just yet. She was sure to get an earful later.

Before she knew any time had passed, the ceremony was complete and Jareth pressed his lips to hers. She felt the jolt of some magical current pass between them, but the kiss was too short to be sure of what it was exactly.

At this point she was sure that there would normally be cheers, but all was silent. They all looked to the door and waited for the guard to bring news. Finally the armoured goblin came.

"She still sleeps."

The High King closed his eyes, feeling the magic around the castle. "The marriage is valid. The curse requires that it now be consummated."

Thirteen eyes were staring at her. She only sought out two of mismatched colour. He nodded, took her hand, and the room vanished.

* * *

_I counted the eyes. It was a complete accident that there were thirteen. Seven pairs minus the one Didymus has an eye patch over. I love it when accidents like that happen. Not too much of a cliffhanger. And to let you know now, I don't do bedroom scenes. You'll get an idea about what happens, but that's all. No _intimate _details and all that._


	7. Jehanna

_Beware the drama. That's all I can say._

* * *

Jareth rose early the next morning. It had taken all his self-control, but after the moment he had so longed for (albeit under different circumstances—he wanted her as his lover, not a sacrificial lamb) he had stayed in bed. Sarah had tried to get up, but he pulled her down and just held her. They hadn't said anything. He could feel that Sarah was forming all sorts of protests, but she had seemed too embarrassed to speak. He had wanted just one moment to be only about them, not Jehanna. He had kept her firmly in his arms until she finally fell asleep.

He gently pulled away from Sarah trying not to wake her. He pulled on his dressing gown and stood at the window looking out over his kingdom. _Their_ kingdom now.

Sarah stirred and was soon awake and sitting up in the bed, sheet clutched to her chest.

"Did it work?" she asked.

"Most likely," he answered tersely.

"You don't know?" She seemed angry.

"I married _you_, Sarah," he snapped. "You can stay in your own room, if you wish. You do not need to move into my chambers. We can pretend it all never happened."

"What?" The anger was gone, and confusion muddled her thoughts. "You don't want me?" It was a simple question of disbelief of his sincerity, no injured vanity demanding why he didn't want her.

"Yes, I want you, Sarah. And that is why I will not ask anything of you as a husband. You must come to me because you want it, not because of anything—or _anyone_—else." He waved a hand and magically changed into a simple outfit of breeches and a vest covered shirt. "I will send your maid to you." He conjured a crystal and then threw it into the air where it vanished.

He walked out of the room. As he neared the throne room he heard humming. A girl's humming. He walked in to find Jehanna lounging on his throne in much the same way he was accustomed to. Of course since she was wearing a skirt her legs showed in the most unladylike way. If she had heard him enter she ignored him. She just stared off into space humming a tune with which he was unfamiliar.

"I was going to let you say something first, but I've changed my mind," she said at last. She turned her head and grinned at him. "Hiya, bro!"

"_Bro_?" An eyebrow went up. "Dear heavens, you've become even more crude and undignified."

She just stuck out her tongue, but then looked past him and waved. "Hi Sarah!"

"Jenny?"

He turned to see Sarah staring with extremely wide eyes at his sister.

"The one and the same! Well… not really the _same_. But word is you're not the same anymore either. Hoggle was grumbling about changes and you, and something about Jareth, but he's _always_ grumbling about Jareth. I think it's true love." She sighed dramatically then started laughing at her own joke. "How've you been, Sar?"

It was Jareth's turn to be wide eyed and confused. "Do you two… know each other?"

"Sure do!" Jehanna said happily, enjoying the whole situation immensely. "We were roomies in London. Eaten any peaches lately, Sar?"

"You rotten little…" she spluttered and held back the myriad of profanities she wanted to shout. "_**It's all your stupid fault**_!"

Sarah started pacing and muttering. Jehanna didn't seem to understand what Sarah was talking about, so she just jumped off the throne and walked towards her brother.

"Did you miss me?" she asked him innocently, her head tilting to one side. Like her brother, there would never be anything truly innocent about her. Mischief came more naturally to her than the goblins. And how Jareth _had_ missed her!

"Of course I did." He grabbed her into a tight hug. "Remind me to tan your hide later," he growled.

She pulled away. "What did _I_ do?"

He raised an eyebrow and gave her 'the stare'. "I'll write you a list. Starting with how you disobeyed me by flying alone and too far out."

"I…" she started to argue, but stopped and dropped her head in shame. But the feeling didn't last long. "I'm not a kid anymore."

"I am disinclined to agree with you. You are still a very young Fae."

"But I matured as a human. I'm as old as Sarah is! Just ask her."

Sarah stopped pacing.

But Jareth didn't ask her. He had a question for his sister. "You remember your mortal life?"

"Every bit of it."

"But," Sarah asked, "as… a mortal… did you remember being a Fae?"

"Not _really_, but _kinda_," Jehanna said slowly. "All my 'odd moments' were a bit of me poking through, but I never really knew everything. Just ideas, emotions, flashes of memory, and a lot of dreams."

"So who was it that kept giving me peaches?"

"That was the princess."

"And the advice?"

"Also the princess but with a bit of the human. Those were definitely odd moments… as I even mentioned at the time."

"So I am fully justified in blaming all of this on you," Sarah said angrily and then stormed out.

"Sarah…" Jehanna called, but her brother grabbed her arm and stopped her from following. "Jareth, before you say anything, I'm still not sure what is going on right now. Father just told me that you married and broke the curse. He wouldn't let anyone explain anything to me. I remember Sarah going missing from Aboveground, and I overheard Hoggle muttering to himself, and then some goblins saying she was here, but I don't know why or what or anything."

"She's my wife," he said.

"So she with you brought me back? Wicked," Jehanna said happily, but the smile fell when she saw his face. "Isn't that good? I thought you'd make a good pair."

Jareth pushed past her and sat on his throne. He was torn with joy at having his sister back, and anger at the role she had played in everything, knowingly or not. Like Sarah said, everything was so easily blamed on Jehanna. But that would wait. She wasn't ready to hear all that had passed the last few days in her name.

"I will not explain it to you now. Right now I have to decide what to do with you."

"Uh oh, you've got your king face on. Why do you need to do anything?"

"Because Amneris is still powerful and will continue to target you because she can. Precautions must be taken, and this time you _will_ obey." When she opened her mouth to protest he continued. "You may have matured as a human, but now you are back in your own body with the experience and hormones of a child."

"It's not fair!" she shouted.

Jareth rubbed his temples. Not this old tune again. "And that attitude proves my point. Even if it isn't fair, you have no one to blame but yourself. You are to keep to the castle until I can devise a way to protect you. You will not go outside. Not to the Labyrinth, not to the city, not to the gardens. The balconies are also off limits; in fact, stay away from windows all together. And if I catch even a rumour that you've changed into an owl I will personally chain you to the walls of the deepest, darkest cell in the dungeons."

He saw tears forming in her eyes, but she ran out of the room before they could fall.

He groaned as his head began to pound and ache. A wife he loved desperately who hated him, who was also inexplicably changing into a Fae, who was probably developing magic that needed training; a sister just freed from a curse, possibly in even more danger now, who also probably hated him right now; a kingdom to run and an evil woman to stop. Yes, his life was just perfect.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah was just climbing down a ladder in the library with a book in hand when Jehanna came in.

"Sarah, can I talk with you?" She looked over at Bregg, a permanent piece of furniture in the library it seemed. "In private?"

Sarah wanted to refuse; she was incredibly angry at the girl. But she noticed the tear-stained face and felt a twinge of pity—just enough to talk with her and maybe clear away some questions.

"Sure. We can go to my room."

Jehanna stopped in the doorway of Sarah's chamber. "You'll have to close those." She pointed to the balcony doors. "Jareth has ordered me away from all windows. I can't go anywhere outside the castle, and balconies qualify as outside."

"That seems a bit ridiculous." But she closed the doors nonetheless.

"Yeah, but if I'm actually obeying then that gives you an idea how serious he is about this." They sat in silence until Jehanna just let all her emotions break loose. "What's going on Sarah? I remember flying, getting sick, all the nightmares, and then growing up a human with no idea who I was. I met you and more and more of my memories leaked through, you disappeared, and then a few days later I woke up… like being human was a very strange but vivid dream… and you're married to my brother. On top of that you both hate me!"

Unlike Jareth, Sarah did not control her anger and emotions and spare Jehanna the truth. "Those peaches you gave me, do you remember? They reinforced a connection I have with the Labyrinth and put me in a sort of dream state. There I spoke with the Goblin King and was eventually tricked into letting him bring me back here. Now I'm stuck living here forever!"

"You were here before? When? How did the peach do anything? It was just a normal peach."

"When I was fifteen I wished my brother away. I beat the Labyrinth and got him back, but during my run I had a bite of a peach. It was one of Jareth's traps for me. It also turned out to be the pomegranate to my Persephone."

"Oh, oops. I'm sorry. Peaches just always made me feel better. Now I know it was because they were a piece of home."

"I noticed your rose garden had a few potted peach trees."

Jehanna jumped up. "You've been to my garden? Did he lock it up? Did you have to find the key and discover the secrets about it?"

Sarah chuckled and said to herself, "He knew you'd be mad." She then spoke to Jehanna. "No, it's open to all who just wander through."

Jehanna sat back down with a slightly pouting expression. "Great, he wastes a perfect opportunity. Okay, so that's how you got here and how you first met my brother. Wait… you beat him and won back your brother?" Her eyes were wide with admiration.

"Yes. Right before I remembered the words 'you have no power over me' is when he tried to offer me my dreams again, and then he tried offering himself."

"And you turned him down? Which you regretted and now happily have been able to fix?" she asked hoping for some good news in the tale.

"No. I didn't even think about it when I turned him down. I just had to get my brother back. I'd do the same thing again if given the chance."

"But then why…" Jehanna looked confused again.

"Did I marry him? The curse on you could only be broken if he married someone as cruel as himself."

Realization fell over Jehanna's features. "You came here because of me. You married him because of me. Jareth loves you, but you only married him because of me. It really is my entire fault."

"Jehanna…" Now Sarah was starting to feel bad for telling her.

"No! Don't call me that! With you I'm Jenny. I was just fine being Jenny! And now you and my brother are miserable because of Jehanna. Why didn't you just leave me alone as Jenny?" she shouted hysterically.

"Because it would have killed your brother when you died. I saw it whenever he spoke about you. It was when he showed me your garden that I knew had to help him get you back. The way he talked about taking you on your first flight… he felt so guilty about the curse. He felt it was his fault."

"But it wasn't!" Jehanna was still in hysterics. "It was my fault! It's all _my_ fault!" Once again she was running out of a room in tears.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Amneris sat smiling on her throne. She was certain that her little visit with Jareth all that time ago would finally push him over the edge. Any day now. She would finally be the Goblin Queen and have on her arm the most handsome and desirable of the Fae kings. Of course, she would have to find another way of getting rid of the brat. Perhaps she could just send her to some other court somewhere far away under the pretext of getting a better education. The Labyrinth was too remote for proper learning for a princess—even a low-stationed bastard of a princess. Yes, that was a good plan. Maybe it was time to make sure again that the brat was still alive.

She conjured a nightmare shadow to show her the girl. She hoped that she'd catch the girl in one of her little shows. That Dracula had been very attractive for a mere human. More men needed to wear leather more often.

The shadow, however, remained blank.

"Show me the girl!" she yelled at it. Still nothing formed in the black. "Where is she?"

Amneris used her magic to feel for the cursed net she had put over the girl. It was gone. If the girl had died a mortal death the net would still be active over the empty Fae body. That could only mean one thing.

"NO!" the Nightmare Queen screamed. Shadows and ghouls quickly fled the room before she could lash out at one of them. "How did he break my curse? How is this possible? Who did he marry?"

She stood and started looking for one of her creatures to vent her frustration on. As she made a ghoul twist and shrivel with pain she started to smile, and then she started to grin.

"Whoever the whore is that he has taken as is wife, she will pay. I'll make her suffer so much that she'll wish she had never even heard of the Goblin King."

Her cackling laughter mixed and echoed around the room with the screams of the tortured ghoul.

* * *

_As I've mentioned before, for a picture of Jehanna, check out my deviantART through the link on my profile. _

_From here I'm not entirely sure where things are going. I'm thinking some action to replace the soap opera worthy drama, some humour with the coming romance, and some good old goblin shenanigans. Updates will slow down a bit since I've now caught up uploading to where I am still writing. But reviews keep my muse happy and working._


	8. Flying Pigs and Not So Fictional Psychos

_Ok, new chapter with some more explanations and general setup. The action/humour should pick up in the next chapter or two._

_With the end of one semester and the start of a new term, updates are going to slow... and have slowed. Sorry. But reviews encourage me to work faster and keep my muses happy and focused. My muses are easily distracted. Especially by a certain WWII coat-wearing alien catcher and all round heroic captain. Must get back to glittered tight-pants.  
_

* * *

After three days dealing with border fortifications, evening meals with Sarah in complete silence, and not seeing any sign of his sister, Jareth's headache was unbearable. Finally, he stopped waiting for the stubborn women to come to him first. He started by tracking down his sister who had decided to lock herself in her room.

He knocked on the door. "Jehanna, I want to speak to you."

"Go away, Jareth," came the muffled shout through the door. "I don't want to talk to anyone."

"Open this door now!"

"No!"

Done being polite, Jareth transported himself in her room. "A king does not stand yelling at doors."

Jehanna was sitting in a large chair with a book in her hands, simultaneously glaring at him and pouting.

"Why have you locked yourself in here?"

"Because Sarah told me everything. It really is my fault. Your life is a misery; her life is a misery; why not just add mine to the list too? Besides, I'd thought you'd want me all safe and locked up in one place."

"Jehanna, things are not ideal right now, but they will improve. Part of that includes taking certain measures for your safety."

"Ha! Why don't you just throw me and an armed guard in an oubliette and forget it?"

Jareth was about to argue, but then he stopped. He took a moment. "That's not a bad idea."

"What?" Jehanna stared at him incredulously. "You do know I was kidding… a joke? You aren't seriously going to put me in an oubliette?"

"It will be furnished with necessary comforts."

"Jareth, no. Please no. Who are you going to put down there to guard me?"

"It would have to be only one person; any others and people would wonder why so many were in there. Someone trustworthy, but who could keep you entertained and out of trouble."

"How much trouble could I cause in an oubliette?"

He raised an eyebrow and she grumbled about stupid, egotistical, all-knowing brothers. He kept thinking about who he could trust to guard her. It would be best if they were already accustomed to living underground.

The dwarf Hedgewort knew his way around the tunnels and oubliettes, but he wasn't an effective guard. Helping Sarah through the Labyrinth was one thing; keeping any threats away from a princess was a whole different set of circumstances. None of his goblins or Sarah's loyal defenders would be up to the task. He needed someone with control over magic and that meant Fae. But which of his lords could be trusted… and which of those would live in an oubliette with a childish princess?

"I've got it!" Jareth said at last. "You will be placed in one of the larger northern oubliettes with Lord Etienne's son."

"Erik? The half-human with slightly homicidal tendencies and a history of abducting young women?"

"Precisely. If he can abduct a woman he is obsessed with and leave her virtue intact then I can easily trust him with you. You are both about the same age, and have a common interest in music. You'll have that to keep you occupied. Wards to keep in the sound can easily be placed and maintained."

"Jareth!"

"I suggest you start gathering the things you want taken to your new quarters."

"New quarters? You aren't going to put me in an oubliette!"

Jareth, being done listening to her arguments, vanished from the room.

"And you left glitter all over my floor!"

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Vand, could you explain a few things for me?" Sarah asked. She had been wandering the gardens and came across Vand reading.

"Your wish is my command, majesty."

Sarah cringed at the title. He had insisted on using it, but Sarah didn't like being reminded that she was married. "Why does Jareth have to worry about Jenny's safety? Why doesn't the High King get involved?"

"He can't. It's not that he doesn't care for his daughter, but there are certain politics involved—mostly the High Queen. She doesn't like that her husband had children by another woman, and so she refuses to have any of his illegitimate children at the High Court. To compensate he tries to give them high positions not wanted by members of his wife's court."

"Why would anyone not want to be ruler of the Labyrinth?"

"Many reasons. It's out in the middle of nowhere, it's filled with goblins, and there's the task of dealing with humans and their wished-away children. And that's not mentioning the Labyrinth itself. Very few would want to be in charge of a place so full with wild magic that it has a will of its own."

"So what about their mother?"

"Why can't she look after Jehanna, you mean?" He let out a long sigh. "There was a rather embarrassing accident not long after Jehanna was born, and Lady Jenith was turned permanently into a tree."

"She was turned into a tree by _accident_?" Sarah's eyes were bulging from their sockets.

"That is why Jareth means to start teaching you to control your developing magic as soon as possible."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah wandered back to the library. There was still so much she didn't know about the Underground, and learning by book was her method of choice. Also lurking around the shelves of the room was Jenny, looking angry about something.

"Oh it's you," Jenny said when she saw Sarah come in. "Don't mind me; I'm just looking for a few books to take with me."

"You're leaving?"

"Jareth's putting me in an oubliette," she grumbled, her face scrunched in a frown and looking so much like Hoggle that Sarah couldn't help laughing. "You can laugh! You're not going to be stuck in the ground with Lord Erik."

"Who is Lord Erik?"

"The Phantom of the Opera," Jenny said while reaching for a book.

"What? I thought he was a fictional character."

"Yeah, and so's that little red book of yours. What was its title? Oh yeah, The Labyrinth. Complete fiction, that."

Sarah ignored the jibe. It was actually comforting to see parts of the Jenny she knew really show through. "But how did the Phantom end up in the Underground?"

"His father is a minor Fae lord. He went Aboveground, got a human pregnant, and left her without knowing she was carrying his child. There are reasons why there are rules against that sort of thing. Even partially magical creatures can't survive long Aboveground."

"So is that why he is deformed?"

"Yeah, and it also explains the personality disorder."

"Personality disorder?"

"Since when do normal people go around killing people and threatening to blow up opera houses?"

"So the book is really true?"

"Kinda. More like a combination of the book and that Andrew Lloyd Webber movie: half mask and good looks on the other side, similar personality; but plot details and extra people more like the book. Apparently that Persian guy really existed, and Christine was Barbie-bimbo blonde. But then I've only heard the stories… and I met him once a few decades back."

"But how did he end up here?"

"Soon after Christine dumped him it set off all sorts of magical bells and whistles—and he used the words 'I wish'. Jareth thinks that since Erik and I are about the same age, both lived Aboveground, and both like music that we will get on perfectly together."

"I hate to say it—and I never thought I'd ever say it—but I agree with him."

Jenny started to look around the room. "Hey, Bregg? Do you see any pigs flying around?" The poet looked up annoyed, realised that she was joking, and grumbled as he got back to moving books around.

Sarah glared at Jenny. "I just mean that if I remember correctly, the Jenny I knew Aboveground had a bit of a crush on Gerard Butler in a certain movie musical."

"Which only makes this tons more awkward. Sarah, I've _played_ Christine."

"See? You'll be fine then. And you do have blonde hair."

"No, not fine! Definitely un-fine. And it's dark blonde! I'm almost a brunette… well, sorta almost anyways. What am I supposed to do? Walk up to him and say 'Hi! I think you're totally hot, slightly psycho, and I once pretended to be the girl you abducted and was ditched by a century back.' Yeah, that's gonna go great." She threw her hands up in the air. "It's no use talking to either of you."

Jenny started to leave, but once she reached the door she turned around.

"I'll make you a deal, Sarah. I'll try my best to get along with Erik and just accept my imprisonment in the oubliette if you try to get to know my brother. Don't push him away."

"I don't know what you mean." Sarah sounded slightly offended.

"You think I'll get on with Erik; I think you are perfectly matched with my brother. So just try to see that, and don't be your usual male-repellent self. Be nice, _please_. And I'll be good and promise to stay out of trouble, nice and safe and out of the way. Deal?"

Somehow not able to resist, Sarah nodded. "Deal. We'll both try… but I don't make any guarantees."

"Of course not." Jenny nodded and once again stopped just before walking completely out of the room. "And could you _**not**_ tell anyone what I've thought about the Phantom in the past?"

"Sure."

"Thank you." And with that she finally left the room.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

During their evening dinners together, Sarah had been silent due to a combination of pride, embarrassment, and a lack of anything to say. It would be a lie to say she wasn't physically attracted to him; he was handsome and oddly enough a gentleman. And after the wedding night, well… But she didn't know or trust him enough for there to be any deeper feelings. It was easier for her to maintain a distance between them. But then she had to go and make that deal with his sister. Well, even with pride and a fading embarrassment, this night she finally had some things to say.

"Jenny told me that you are sending her to an oubliette with the Phantom of the Opera," she said as the first course was brought in.

He looked at her, stunned that she had finally decided to start a conversation. "Yes, I had forgotten that humans know about him."

"So what else that we think is fiction is actually real here? Don't tell me Frankenstein and Dracula are real too."

"Frankenstein's monster, no."

"Oh, that's goo…o—hold on, Dracula is real?"

Jareth chuckled. "Of course not. Vampires do not exist. There are a few varieties of species that are similar, a few Fae lords and kings that are much like the Prince of Darkness, but Dracula and vampires are not real."

"But the Phantom is real. Why do humans know about him?"

"Pure accident. What Leroux wrote was all true. He interviewed the people involved, but the story was still distorted. I believe Lord Erik was so frustrated with how his story had been twisted that he took a more direct approach in inspiring the musical."

"So _The Phantom of the Opera_ really was written by the Phantom."

"Inspired by manipulating the dreams of the composer, yes."

"New meaning to the line 'in dreams he came to me.' When does Jenny leave?"

"I've left Lord Erik in charge of fitting the oubliette with everything it needs, and according to his report Jehanna will be able to go there the day after tomorrow. Why are you smiling like that?"

The smile that had formed at the thought of Jenny's reaction to living in the _Phantom's Lair_ quickly fell. "No reason. When do I start learning to use the magic that I've suddenly developed?"

"As soon as Jehanna leaves. I have special protections around the castle now that will interfere with your lessons."

"Will I be meeting Lord Erik?"

"No, I am going to escort Jehanna straight there where he will be waiting."

"And you have no problems leaving your sister with a… man of his past?"

Jareth smiled. "A very diplomatic way of describing him. No, I trust he will treat her well. It is going to take a man of his _experience_ to keep her safe. Do you have a problem with the choice?"

"No, I was just making sure that all things have been considered. I actually think it is a very good choice."

Jareth looked around. "There aren't any pigs flying around, are there?"

"So you two _are_ related." He raised an eyebrow. "She asked the same thing when I told her the same thing."

Jareth laughed. Oddly enough, Sarah liked making him laugh. Maybe living up to her deal with Jenny wouldn't be so hard after all.

* * *

_Reason for throwing a cross-over into the mix? A wonderfully hilarious comic, _The Girls Next Door, _by Pika-la-Cynique. After reading the comic the muses decided to throw Jenny in an oubliette with Erik, and I can't really fight with my muses when they are so fickle. They still haven't told me how much of that side plot will be revealed. While I can't tell them what to do, they are willing to listen to suggestions from lovely reviewers. So let them know what you think. _


	9. Glitter and a Magic Lesson

_I feel so badly that this story is taking me so long to update. Huge thank yous to all who reviewed. You are all so wonderful!_

_Now on with the story.  
_

* * *

"Think of me, think of me fondly when we've said… Aaaaaiiiiieeeeee!"

"I don't remember _that_ in the song," Sarah said, having just walked into Jenny's room.

"It's the special when-you've-been-snuck-up-on lyrics. Make some noise when you walk. Or better yet, knock on the door!"

Sarah smiled, but to Jenny it looked more like a smirk. "You know, that's a very interesting song choice given the present circumstances."

"Don't start, please. I was in the play. The songs are stuck in my head. They just pop out whenever I least expect them. I have no control over it."

"That should make things interesting while living in the Phantom's Oubliette, especially when it turns out he actually is the composer."

Jenny shut the lid of the last of her suitcases. "Don't remind me."

"Maybe you won't have to stay there long," Sarah said.

"I wish," Jenny muttered.

"Unfortunately I cannot grant that wish." Both girls turned and saw Jareth, who had just appeared from nowhere. "I'd have to catch her in the act of breaking the laws of the Underground and then petition for her imprisonment. When Jehanna was cursed no one actually saw her do it. Amneris is too careful for that, and the courts would take centuries over the petition… if they even accepted to hear it. And the only way I could kill her is if she attacks me and my kingdom. This could take a century or more to end."

"That's not fair!" Jenny whined.

Sarah was silent. She longed to scream those same words. Unfortunately she seemed to be growing up and accepting of the rules that now governed her. It made too much sense that all-powerful immortal beings would keep rules and laws to maintain their power—even if it would also create unfair circumstances like this one. She didn't know if this knowledge was due to her accepting of her situation or because she was changing into a Fae. Either way, it still unsettled her.

"No," Jareth said calmly. "But it is time to go."

Jenny's trunks and suitcases disappeared with a puff of glitter. Jenny and Sarah hugged each other tightly.

"We'll see each other soon," Sarah whispered.

Jenny just nodded; she looked like she was fighting tears and the urge to scream and throw a tantrum. She took her brother's arm and waited for him to transport them to her prison.

"Oh!" Jenny said quickly. "Don't forget our deal, Sarah!"

Then another burst of glitter and Sarah was alone in the empty room.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

The oubliette was unusually large. No doubt Jareth and Lord Erik had expanded it a bit. It was separated into three areas: two bedrooms and a main living area. Jenny went straight to her bedroom while Jareth spoke privately with Lord Erik.

It certainly wasn't one of the grand state bedrooms in the Goblin Castle, but it was certainly better than her tiny room back in the London flat. There was a desk and shelves with all that she had packed already stored away. Carved into one stone wall was a wardrobe with a screen depicting the Labyrinth in front of it. The craftsmanship of the screen was incredible, but not as incredible as the bed. The headboard was a carved owl, its wings sweeping down to create the sides of the bed and meet at the end. Instead of the beautiful bed making her feel happy, she felt numb. The urge to throw a fit drained away.

Jenny sat down on the bed and tried to resign herself to her fate. Jareth returned a few moments later and grabbed her into one last hug before disappearing. Thinking that the reintroductions might as well be gotten over with, Jenny walked out into the living area. Lord Erik was standing on the other side of the room. They both stood at the opposite ends and stared at each other.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

After what seemed only a few minutes later, Jareth materialised next to Sarah, glitter getting all over the carpet. Sarah was beginning to wonder just who had to clean it up later.

"Come, Sarah," he said while holding out a hand. "It is time for your first magic lesson."

"What, now?" Sarah was displeased at Jareth's easy dismissal of his sister… especially given everything she had done for him to get her back.

His eyes flashed coldly and his king face appeared. "Sarah, we should have started this days ago. The longer you go without training the more dangerous you are to yourself and the whole city."

She was about to tell him to just stuff it with her usual biting wit, but once again her brain decided to give her a flashback.

_Don't forget our deal, Sarah!_

Stupid deal.

"I'm sorry," Sarah ground out. She might as well explain if he couldn't read her mind. "It just seems a bit harsh to do this so soon after sending Jenny away."

Jareth's features softened. "I know. But there is nothing else I can do. She is safe now, and we must go on. And that includes training you."

"Right, the old Dunkirk spirit," Sarah muttered. Jareth looked confused. "Never mind, English thing."

She took his offered hand and let him lead her down a hall, up stairs, and into a large round tower room. The space was open and ideally designed for practice: pillows scattered around the edges of the room, and large windows all around the tower looking out over the whole Labyrinth.

"The first thing you will learn is how to conjure a simple scrying crystal." He put his hand under hers palms up. "Concentrate. Reach out and feel the crystal coming together. As you pull it into a sphere focus on what you want to see."

"_Anything_ I want to see?" she asked, ignoring the odd tingle from where their hands touched.

"To start it might be easiest to focus on what you want to see the most. Perhaps you might focus on your brother."

_Toby_. She did miss him very much. Sarah closed her eyes and concentrated. Suddenly she could feel the soft swirls of magic in the air. Reaching out, she could feel it across the whole kingdom, and no doubt the whole Underground beyond. Thinking of her brother once more, she mentally pulled at pieces of the magic and spun them around into a sphere. Feeling something in her hand, Sarah opened her eyes. She now held a crystal in her hand. In it she could see her brother. He was at home sitting in front of his favourite video game. She could see Karen, probably yelling at him to put the game down and go clean up his room. Tears started to bubble up from her tear ducts.

"You can use any mirror here to contact him," Jareth said softly. "The goblins have kept in touch with him. We all grew rather fond of him during his brief stay."

She felt him pull his hand away and take a few steps back. She kept watching the small image of her brother.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

She turned to face him, but he was gone.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Back in the oubliette…

Jenny sat in the main room staring at a bit of one of the deep red carpets covering the rock floor. There was still a bit of glitter from Jareth's transportation spell. Lord Erik sat on the other side of the room contemplating the pattern of shadows being cast on the wall from the candles. After staring at each other before, they had just taken seats without speaking. They had been sitting for just over an hour and neither had started any sort of conversation. Not even a cough to clear the throat. Never was there a room in the Goblin Kingdom as silent.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah walked to her room, still not sure of what to make of the Goblin King's latest gesture. It was thoughtful and kind. It might even be a way to make up for tearing her so suddenly from her life Aboveground. What did her family even think happened? Both she and Jenny had just disappeared with no warning, no trace, nothing to leave any clue as to what happened. How much time had passed Above between her disappearance and the breaking of the curse? Did Jenny have time to tell the police she was missing?

Sarah sat at her vanity mirror and took a deep breath.

"Toby, I need to talk to you," she said, hoping they were the right words. She felt the magic start to swirl in the glass and after a few seconds Toby appeared. It looked as if he had taken over her old room and kept the vanity there.

"Hey Toby!" Sarah said weakly and waved a hand slightly.

"Sarah! I knew it! I knew it couldn't be true."

"What couldn't be true?"

"That you and your friend Jenny were killed in a bus accident."

"Is that what they think happened?"

"Yeah, but I knew it wasn't true. What did happen, Sarah?"

"Long story. The short version is that I'm now permanently stuck living Underground and Jenny was actually the Goblin King's sister under a curse that turned her human, but now she's back to normal and here."

"Wow!" He looked at her in total awe. "That's so cool. You are so lucky."

Sarah looked away.

"What's wrong, Sarah?"

"Nothing, it's complicated. I should go, but I'm going to keep in touch with you, young mister. Someone has to double check that you're cleaning you room when your mother tells you to."

"Aw, Sarah!" he whined.

"Maybe some goblins can come over and help. But actually… they might just make it worse. I love you, Toby."

"I love you, too. I'm really glad you're okay. Bye!"

The mirror returned to its normal reflection. Sarah felt the grief start to sink in. But then there was something else. A warm feeling, like being wrapped up in a large hug. Again using the newly acquired concentration to feel magic, Sarah opened up her senses. In her mind came the overwhelming image of the Labyrinth. The Labyrinth was trying to comfort her?

* * *

_And I'm going to leave it there. The chapters might be turning a bit shorter, but hopefully that means I can work on them faster. I've got finals again so I'm not sure. Sometimes I wish I didn't decide to take summer classes._

_But stay tuned for more Jenny/Erik action. They might actually speak the next time we see them. Also Sarah's connection to the Labyrinth will be revealed soon, as well as what Amneris is up to. Let me know what you think!  
_


	10. Singing

_Finally, finished with spring classes. And next week I get to start summer classes. Should be a little less class though, and more time for writing. I am working as much as I can on this, but this other story idea I have won't let me alone. Stupid double-hearted alien. Must get back to the royal tight pants!_  


* * *

Over an hour in silence with the Phantom of the Opera was driving Jenny insane. But what was she supposed to say? Fae protocol and etiquette was useless. There simply wasn't anything in court manners for how to speak to your guard when put into an oubliette. Usually an oubliette didn't require a guard. So she picked through her brain about human rules that might help.

_Jane Austen_. Good source for rules of politeness. What was it again? If you don't have anything to say keep your comments to the weather and the state of the roads. Fat lot of help that was. They were in an oubliette! What sort of weather did you find hundreds of feet under the ground?

Weather, roads, fashion… that's it! Décor.

"I like the carpets." The abrupt statement seemed to startle him. He just stared at her. "I know they are definitely from around here, but the design is slightly different than what one usually sees in the Goblin Kingdom."

"They are Persian inspired," he answered after pausing a moment. "At least as close to Persian as the artisans could get them."

"Oh." Again, what did she say next? _I wouldn't think you'd care for Persian after all the…you know… that happened there_. "Are you fond of the Persian style?"

"It was the high style of the time."

"Right, the oriental influence in the Victorian era." Goddess, why didn't she think before she opened her big fat mouth? Why not just blurt out everything else she knows?

"Have things changed much?" he asked.

"Yeah, a bit. Persian rugs, still in though. But I've never cared much for them. But these are nice. Quite lovely."

Silence again.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Now concentrate."

Once again Jareth and Sarah were in the tower practice room working on her magic skills. They had spent the past couple of days on basic glamours and the more domestic spells. To say Sarah was shocked at Jareth's profound experience with domestic spells would be an understatement. But any loss of masculinity was quickly recovered when he explained how important a simple cleaning spell was with a castle full of less than tidy goblins.

Today they moved on to defensive spells.

"Usually you won't need battle magic, but with things as they are it may be necessary," Jareth had explained.

"Why won't I need battle magic?" Sarah snapped. She then went for sarcasm. "I have _you_ to protect me?"

She could see him taking a breath to ease the rising angry retort. Dead calm he replied, "The Labyrinth and the Goblin Kingdom are looked down upon by the others. No one in the court wishes to be burdened with it, and so they aren't likely to attack. And the Labyrinth itself is one of our best defences. Not many will brave it to get to the castle, and even if they try you know what lies in store for them."

Sarah tried to keep the shame from her face. She had not lived true to her deal just then. He had not been a chauvinist as she had been quick to assume. Damn him and his practical answers! More and more she was seeing the cruel villain disappear and a fair and just king take his place.

But she swiftly regained her composure. "But why don't they want the Labyrinth? It's so beautiful."

She could feel the Labyrinth preening at her compliment. Jareth was looking at her with some emotion that Sarah couldn't identify... wouldn't identify. Again she found herself turning to look out a window and regain her cool exterior.

"I'm glad _you_ think so," he said softly. "But if you saw the other kingdoms you might not be so quick to think so highly of it. And then there are the goblins."

Sarah smiled. "I rather like them."

He burst out laughing.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Did you hear?" Splunk asked his companions.

"Hear whats?" Dither asked back.

"The Lady says she likes us!" Splunk announced happily.

"She did?" Dither's eyes were wide.

"She's crazy!" Perkwink said crossly.

"Yeah," Dither agreed quickly.

"No she's ain't!" Splunk cried angrily. "I like her."

"Me too!" Dither also agreed. He couldn't really make up his mind.

"Does she sing like King-dude?" Runeenhose asked.

"That would be fun!" Kinkfud exclaimed. "Let's invite her to a party."

Perkwink grumbled. "We don't need no more singers."

"Nope!" Dither said.

"But what if she sings real pretties?" Runeenhose asked.

"Yeah!" Dither said.

"I bet she do sing pretty," Splunk agreed. "I'll go ask Lady."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jenny was lying in her bed wondering if there was really any point in getting up. The past few days had come and gone in complete silence. They had both ended up retreating to their own rooms and passing the time alone. Jenny had finished several of her books, and embroidered at least two cushions, and had just started working on her third.

Jenny finally gave in and got out of the bed. Not wanting to pick up the embroidery just yet, she went out into the main room. Lord Erik was no where to be seen. Jenny could practically hear the piano calling to her—metaphorically, of course, as not even in the Underground do pianos talk. She sat down and played for the good portion of an hour. There was still no sign of Lord Erik. As she continued to play the repressed urge to sing finally broke.

"Ja nus hons pris ne dira sa reson  
Adroitement, s'ensi com dolans non;  
Mes par confort puet il fere chançon.  
Moult ai d'amis, mes povre sont li don;  
Honte en avront, se por ma reançon  
Sui ces deus yvers pris.

"Ce sevent bien mi honme et mi baron,  
Englois, Normant, Poitevin et Gascon,  
Que je n'avoie si povre conpaignon,  
Cui je laissasse por avoir en prixon.  
Je nel di pas por nule retraçon  
Mes encor sui ge pris."

As she let the last notes die, she noticed that she now had an audience.

"Don't you know it's rude to sneak up on people and stare at them!" she snapped. And there went the deal with Sarah. Not that she had been doing such a fantastic job about it before.

They both once more stormed off to their own chambers.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"Hiya Lady!"

Sarah turned to look at the goblin that had come up to her in the garden. She had been sitting reading in Jenny's garden, but was glad of the distraction. She liked that none of the goblins called her 'queen', just 'Lady'.

"Hello Splunk," she said.

"Do you sing, Lady?" the goblin asked.

"Yeah, a little."

"Great! We want you singing at our party!" The goblin was practically dancing with excitement.

Sarah couldn't bring herself to refuse. "All right, I'd love to."

With loud shouts of glee Splunk went running off.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jareth was walking the halls of his castle when he suddenly noticed that there was a decided lack of goblins bouncing around. There was of course the occasional one or two scuttling about, but not the usual numbers making a mischief. Approaching the throne room he heard the sounds of a rather large goblin party.

Thinking he wouldn't join them this time, he then heard a sound that could never come from a goblin.

Beautiful singing.

A woman's voice.

He peered into the room without being noticed. Sarah was in the middle and entertaining an ecstatic audience.

"Gettin' together is better than ever. Gettin' together never felt like this before."

Jareth didn't recognise the song, but it was clear that the goblins loved it. And he loved the sound of Sarah's voice. He had had no idea that she could sing. Once more his hopes rose that perhaps in time she would see as he did how well they fit together.

The song ended, and Jareth stepped into the throne room to add his applause with the thunder of the little goblin hands, feet, weapons, weapons on goblins' heads, feet up other goblins' noses…

Sarah looked flustered when she saw him, but then the goblins were asking that he sing… and that the Lady should sing with him.

"Perhaps another time we can sing together," Jareth said for Sarah's benefit. But he was more than pleased that she danced with some of the goblins while he took his turn singing for his subjects.

* * *

_It's a bit shorter than my normal style, but it seemed right to end it there. And don't worry, more will be revealed as things go on. I had to throw in more goblin action to break up the serious bits. And brownie points to the person who can identify the songs I put in. There is some significance to them. As always, let me know what you think. I love reviews._


	11. In the Rain

_And the brownie points go to kms5665 for getting the correct songs in the previous chapter. And britlitlover for making me upload so quickly.  
_

_Ok, funny story. When I came up with the title for the previous chapter I had this sudden flash of what the next chapter's title should be. So I wrote it down and went to bed. I get up the next morning and was going to write out a chapter for another fic (I'm not uploading yet—want more of it done first) because I had it all outlined and knew what was going to happen, but I think "oh, I'll just get a few lines in for my Labyrinth story first, just see what happens." Well, a few lines turned into a whole scene, which then led to a whole chapter in a matter of hours. So praises should be sung to my Muses (they love reviews best ;D )_

_

* * *

_

That night a storm came over the Labyrinth. Goblins took to the streets to play in the newly forming mud. Sarah watched from the window in her chambers. The goblins looked very happy, but she couldn't shake the feeling that there was some sort of danger coming. She reached out in her mind to the Labyrinth. It was happy for the rain, but also nervous. It couldn't form a picture to explain why; it could only convey a feeling much like Sarah's own at the moment. It did, however, send her one image: Jareth.

Wrapping her shawl more tightly around her shoulders, Sarah sighed. She didn't want to seek out the Goblin King, but if he could offer any explanation—any small reassurance—she would take it. She turned from the window and summoned a crystal to tell her where the king was. It showed him in his study, so pulling on the magic once more Sarah transported there.

Jareth looked up from the paperwork on his desk. "Sarah."

"Look, I can't help feeling that something bad is coming, and the Labyrinth has the same feeling, so I wanted to know what you thought. Hopefully you can tell me that I'm worrying over nothing and that everything is fine."

He had a worried expression now on his face. Not good.

"You spoke with the Labyrinth?" he asked slowly.

"Yes, I've sort of felt it in my mind for a while." Sarah shifted her weight as he still looked disturbed. "Is that not normal?"

"Usually only the Goblin King can hear the Labyrinth. Most queens have only been consorts, so the advantage was denied them."

"Gee, you really love women here," Sarah said with an angry sarcasm.

"You have been studying the Underground, Sarah," he said wearily. "Some kingdoms by their nature alone allow for a king and his consort, others a queen and her prince consort, and only a few a king and queen of equal standing. There hasn't been a true Queen of the Labyrinth for over three millennia." He looked at her with admiration. "I knew you were something precious."

"Great, just don't go all Gollum on me," said Sarah. He looked confused at the reference, but he must really have been getting used to her unusual human references as he didn't enquire about it further. He just continued to look at her with that admiration. She tried to keep how uncomfortable that made her out of her voice. "But all that aside, is danger coming?"

She watched as he closed his eyes to reach out his senses. She wished she could read what was going through his mind.

_He feels it too_, the Labyrinth spoke in her mind. It was nice but slightly disconcerting how her wishes were often granted. _It is like the buzz of a faerie some feet away. But it is coming._

"What's coming?" Sarah let slip through out loud.

Jareth snapped open his eyes. "Are you speaking to me?"

"No, the Labyrinth. And it told me what you sensed. The buzz of a faerie some feet away."

He looked annoyed, and she could just bet he was mentally scolding the Labyrinth for going behind his back. She could practically feel the Labyrinth stubbornly crossing its arms. She resisted the urge to laugh at the picture of the two headstrong creatures standing off against each other.

"I think we should continue your training at a faster pace… just in case."

"Then you aren't worried about what is coming?" she asked.

"Until we know more, no. It could mean that this storm will just be rather destructive and that it will take some time to repair the damage done. And in that case, both I and the Labyrinth will need your help, my Queen."

Sarah was not only uncomfortable at the sudden endearment and reminder of who she was married to, but she also didn't believe that this was just a coming natural disaster. She let both go for now and followed him to the training room.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Splunk had been just as happy as the other goblins when the rain came; it was rare around the Labyrinth. But after only a few moments in the mud, he had the sudden idea that he should clean off and stay inside. Goblins didn't get ideas, but Splunk wasn't as stupid as some. He obeyed the idea—wondering all the while what was so great about being clean—and went in search of the Lady. Maybe he could have more fun with her than the mud.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jenny was asleep in her bed tossing and moaning. Erik had heard her, but decided not to risk her wrath in waking her. It was probably just a nightmare. If it continued too long, or got worse, he would then wake her.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Splunk searched the castle and soon found the Lady in the big tower room doing magic with the King-dude. Finding a safe and shadowed corner, the small goblin sat and watched.

The Lady was very good at magic. She was learning very quickly, and Splunk could tell that she was very powerful. She might even have more power than the King. Splunk also noticed that the closer the King got to the Lady, the more her face turned red. Splunk would have to ask the Lady why she did that.

Splunk had only been watching for a few minutes when the King noticed him.

"Ah, Spunder," he called.

"Splunk," the Lady corrected.

"I think we could use you to help Her Majesty learn offensive spells," the King continued.

"Too cowardly to let me attack _you_, Jareth?" the Lady said.

Splunk giggled. He _really_ liked the Lady.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah was very nervous about shooting dangerous spells at a poor little goblin, but she soon saw just how thick skinned the creatures were. They were practically indestructible. It seemed they wore armour for pure fashion rather than protection. Splunk also seemed to enjoy it like nothing else.

Jareth was actually proving to be a good teacher. Although Sarah did wish he wouldn't stand so close at times. It was worse when he touched her to help correct her hand movements or to help with her concentration. He was able to use his power to help guide hers, but it did anything but help her concentration. In fact, at those moments she would have to work three times as hard to focus properly.

But if the goblin bouncing up to her begging for her to practice more on him—despite just having been hurled around the room in a mini tornado and ending up smashing headfirst into the wall—was anything to go by, she was making progress and adeptly exercising control. Her only worry was that when Splunk told his friends what he had been doing, she'd have dozens of goblins clamouring for her to send them shooting halfway across the Labyrinth.

"I think that is enough for now," Jareth said, and Splunk looked quite upset. "Thank you, Spink, for your help." The goblin stood there smiling. "Well… go."

Jareth kicked the goblin out the door hard enough for him to go rolling down the stairs. Echoing up the staircase was the sound of stone hitting armour and goblin laughter. Jareth turned back to Sarah, smirk on his face.

"You are doing very well, Sarah," he said. "Your attacks are coming nicely."

"Well a defenceless goblin isn't too hard a target," Sarah said snidely from her position leaning back against the wall.

"No, but it meant you could gain control over the attack before having a force work against it. Tomorrow you will face me and see if you can get past my defences."

"Piece of cake," Sarah answered without thinking. Then the memory of the last time she used those words with him came flooding back. And she could tell he was remembering as well.

"I think I have a slice or two that may prove otherwise," he said, walking up to her and leaning over her just as before.

And just like the last time their faces were close. Very close. Sarah wanted to turn her head away, but she was trapped by his mismatched eyes. There was even more tension between them than the last time. But unlike the last time, Jareth moved forward and pressed his lips to hers.

Part of her was screaming to run away. The other half was enjoying the kiss and the feel of Jareth's closeness. It was trying to tell her that she was a fool for not giving in and being the true wife of the king. The part that wanted to run may not have been able to end the kiss, but it squashed the idea of returning to Jareth's bed. For now she'd just enjoy this.

Outside the storm continued to pour rain over the kingdom.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jenny jolted awake with a scream. Lord Erik came quickly into her room and to her side.

"Princess Jehanna, what is it?"

She looked at him; there was honest concern in his face. She was too disoriented from the nightmare to truly process that. But she did process that it was the first time he had used her royal name.

"Don't call me that! My name is Jenny."

He looked at her a moment before he spoke again. "Jenny, what is it? Why did you scream? Was it just a nightmare?"

"No." She shook her head and had a bit of a wild desperation to her. "No, not just a nightmare. Something bad is coming. It's already here. In the rain."

"We are hundreds of feet below the surface; how do you know it is raining?"

"I just do!" In her panic she was now turning to anger, a more comfortably familiar emotion. "It's raining. It's in the rain! You don't believe me, so just leave! Leave me alone!"

He left, but he came right back with a cup that definitely wasn't filled with water.

"This will calm you and help you sleep," he said while holding it out to her.

"No thank you," she snapped.

"Drink," he ordered.

"No!" She moved to hit the cup out of his hand, but he was too quick and moved it out of her way.

They both just stared at each other with anger. He slammed the cup down on a table beside her bed and stormed out of the room.

"It's in the rain," Jenny repeated as she looked at the ceiling.

* * *

_Oh dear, a cliffhanger. But things are piecing together and getting ready for the climax. Let me know what you think! (It's the little button below that says review ;D )_


	12. Out of the Rain

_Thanks to all those who have reviewed. I am determined to finish this story as quickly as I can just for all of you. Enjoy!  
_

* * *

Sarah sat pouring over a political text while the rain continued to pour outside. The room was her own private sitting room that she had found and personalised with domestic magic—it really was very useful. She tried to ignore the fact that it was right next to Jareth's study and even had a connecting door. She tried even more to forget the kiss. Luckily it hadn't been spoken of or repeated afterwards. That one part was still insisting that the absence of more kissing was not a lucky occurrence, but she refused to listen to it.

The rain had been falling steadily for almost three days. Sarah was beginning to be won over to the idea that the feeling of impending trouble was just about the destruction the rain might do, but her intuition still told her that it was something else. Something was coming after the rain. The goblins had mostly abandoned the castle to run amuck outside in the mud. Only Splunk and some of the goblin staff stayed inside. And the little goblin never left Sarah's side for long. Sarah even made a little bed for the goblin in her room. But she was glad of his company and he was an excellent helper when she practiced her magic.

Yet in the past few minutes Splunk had been absent. It only took a few more moments for him to return.

"Hey Lady!" he greeted happily.

"Hello, Splunk. Where have you been?"

"His Kingly Pant-ness wants me to remind you that it's time for more magic stuff."

"Then I mustn't keep his Kingly Pant-ness waiting," Sarah said while getting up from her seat.

The goblin giggled. As they were walking out of the room he asked, "Why does Lady's face turn all red when the King-dude gets near?"

"What?" Sarah could feel her face heating up.

"And it's doing it now, Lady!" Splunk looked at her in amazement.

And just how was she supposed to argue? She couldn't think of anything. Pleading ignorance seemed her only option. "I don't know, Splunk. It just happens."

The goblin just nodded, and Sarah hoped against hope that it was the end of it.

If Sarah hadn't been so preoccupied with thoughts of the Goblin King causing her to blush so much, then she would have felt the magic sooner. As it was, she entered the tower room and was only just able to block an attack.

"Very good," Jareth said. "Next time you'll be faster."

Sarah was about to snap back that she would have been faster that time if she hadn't been distracted, but she held her tongue. Let him thinking she was weaker than she was worked to her advantage. And as they continued and he let her attack him, she made sure not to hit him with all her power. She controlled it so her level was just enough to make him think she was giving it her all. She wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of knowing just how good of a teacher he really was.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

When the Lady left, Splunk stayed behind to speak with the King.

"Um, your great kingy sir?" he began.

"What is it Sploink?" the King demanded.

"I was wonderings if you knows why the Lady turns red when she's near you."

The King raised an eyebrow. "She turns red? Fascinating. Thank you, Spudoink."

The King then left, and Splunk was left still not knowing what was going on. Fae peoples were so strange.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jenny had eventually given in and taken the concoction Lord Erik had given her and she had rejected. As a couple days of more silence and avoidance passed, Jenny began to regret her actions. She decided to apologise, but waited for the right moment and her courage to come and combine until she finally spoke the apology. It was probably going to be a long wait.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

With the amount of progress Jareth had been making with Sarah, it took all his strength not to ruin it by pushing her too much. So after the kiss, though he longed to kiss her again and again, he waited for her to make the next move. And then Splunk had told him that Sarah blushed whenever he was near. He was newly determined to let her come to him. Because if anything, her acquiescence to him in that small moment and the fact that he made her blush gave him hope that she would one day come to love him. He was resigned to the fact that it would never be as much as he loved her—fate and the circumstance that led to her arrival Underground had seen to that—but he would take whatever he could get.

Jareth was mulling over all of this while sitting on his throne and idly twirling crystals in his hand. Then Vand walked into the room.

"Vand," Jareth said with surprise, but not moving from his lounged position on his throne. "What brings you here?"

"I know I said I'd leave you for a while to settle in with the lovely Sarah, but then I heard about the rain."

"You came all the way back here from your lands in the outer provinces to talk about the weather?" Jareth raised an eyebrow.

"Funny sort of weather patterns, Jareth. Did you know that the rain is concentrated just over the central Labyrinth? It's not raining in the outer provinces. Rain is rare enough, but so much over such a specific location?"

"What am I supposed to do about it?" Jareth asked, still sounding unconcerned and a little bored. But Vand knew that was just the Goblin King's way of hiding his worry.

"I don't know. But I have come to ask your permission to discuss it with members of the High Court and see what they think."

"They won't think anything of it. Or have you forgotten how little they care for my kingdom?"

"That may be so, but we both know of one person who cares _too much_. It might be wise to consider her involved somehow." Vand sighed. "And the dwarves will care. They do neighbour your kingdom, and if anything were to happen to it they would be the logical next point of attack. Plus, you once said yourself that the High Court is so dreadfully dull that all they do is talk about the weather. This should entertain them for a little while."

"Very well. Go see what you can do."

"Thank you, your majesty. And please convey my regards to your queen."

Jareth nodded and Vand left the castle.

Jareth hadn't been giving much thought to the weather, it was true. But now it began to worry him. If the feeling of something bad approaching that both he and Sarah felt concerned him, the fact that the rain was only over the Labyrinth and his castle was nearly enough to send him into a panic. Nearly, but not quite. He was the Goblin King, and as such did not panic. It was something that French-born Lord Erik would call sang-froid.

At least he had the comfort that Jehanna was safely kept deep under the earth in the oubliette. But then he began thinking of Sarah's safety. If the rain was somehow connected to Amneris, then Sarah was out in the open to its effects. Had he been so preoccupied with Jehanna's safety that he had forgotten that Amneris's ultimate goal had been to be his queen? If she had attacked his sister before, what was there preventing her from attacking Sarah?

He got up from his throne and walked to the window. The rain was still falling and the goblins still playing in the mud. And then the rain stopped.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jenny was pacing in her room, trying to talk herself into apologising to Lord Erik. Unfortunately she was better at talking herself out of it. So she continued to pace and argue with herself.

Then she screamed as a splitting pain ripped through her skull. Once again Lord Erik came running to her aid. He knelt beside Jenny, the princess having fallen to the floor.

"It's too late," Jenny whispered. "She's here."

"Who is? No one can get into this oubliette. You are safe."

"No, not here," Jenny said. "Up there. The rain has stopped. I only hope Jareth is ready."

"Ready for what?"

"The end."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah was in her room when the rain stopped. She reached out her senses to feel if the impending doom was closer. She felt something scream, and then nothing. Reaching out to the Labyrinth she felt numb, and then as if she was shoved away. There was no inner argument over getting up and finding Jareth.

She looked in his study; it was empty. She ran down the corridors to the throne room. She found him standing at the window. She couldn't remember seeing him so tense before. Even at his most threatening she always imagined he was relaxed. But now she grew even more worried as she stared at the straight back, the arm taut as it pushed against the casing, and the neck muscles so rigid that they were visible from across the room. She definitely did not like the feeling she was having.

"Jareth," she said softly, but she knew he heard her.

"I know." He didn't turn from the window.

"What is it?" She didn't want to move, too afraid of what he was staring at, but when he didn't answer after a few moments she gathered her courage and joined him at the window.

The rain had stopped. The goblins should have still been playing in the mud. But they weren't. The goblins stood still.

"Have you ever seen…" Sarah didn't finish the question. She didn't need to.

"No."

"I tried to reach out to the Labyrinth, but I was pushed back."

"I know."

"Jareth, please." Sarah couldn't keep the fear from her voice. "What is going on?"

"The rain," he said after a long moment of silence. "It's too late. I should have sensed…"

"Sensed what? What about the rain?"

"It was a spell. The rain was dropping a sort of magic net over all it touched, slow enough that it was undetectable. I should have looked closer at it."

"What does the net do, Jareth?"

He finally turned from the window and looked at her. "It gives her control. Everything it touched is under her power."

"Jareth!" Sarah suddenly pointed out the window.

In the main square of the Goblin City a black cloud gathered and drew shape into a woman in a tight dark dress with dangerous armoured accents. She looked around the square and laughed. Sarah had never heard something so painful to her ears, but she couldn't pin point what made it so horrible. Then the woman drew out a long black sword and pointed to the window where they stood.

Jareth took a deep breath, and said one word that gripped Sarah with fear.

"Amneris."

* * *

_Duh duh duh! As you might guess, this is the climax, so the end is not far in following. And I'm sorry that I just couldn't resist from inserting a line and title from Torchwood. The new series starting soon has me a bit distracted, but I'm trying not to become so distracted I get writer's block in this story. It might take some extra reviews to keep the muses working happily so that I can finish this in a timely fashion. So just hit the button just below and let me know what you think!_


	13. Battle Begins

_I had two options with this chapter: separate it into two parts and build some dramatic tension, or do it all in one really long part. I've decided to go with option one. So it's a bit short, but the good news is that the next chapter is about halfway done. A big reason for the split is that I haven't been feeling well and the very last bit of the next chapter is going to take my full brain power. But I wanted to give you something for being such wonderful reviewers, small in numbers but big in encouragement._

* * *

Jareth pulled Sarah away from the window and towards the centre of the throne room.

"Sarah, I'm sorry," he said as he made sure to look her right in the eyes. "This is my fight. I have to make sure you're safe."

Thousands of protests were waiting to come out of Sarah's mouth, but they were all silenced as he pulled her into a desperate kiss.

"I love you," he whispered as he pulled away. And then Sarah vanished.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

"The end of what?" Lord Erik asked as he gently pulled Jenny up from the floor and helped her to sit on a chair.

"Everything," Jenny said. "This whole silent war with the Queen of Nightmares. She's here in the kingdom."

"The king would never allow her to break through the defences," he tried to protest.

"He probably didn't know."

"How could he not know but you do?"

"She cursed me; I know too well what her magic feels like. That's why I panicked about the rain. I'm sorry I got angry at you. I don't like having to always be afraid."

He was about say something to her when a rather loud and colourful curse came from the main room. The two quickly walked out and saw Sarah standing in the middle of the room.

"That bastard!" Sarah shouted.

"Sarah?" Jenny asked, not quite believing that her friend was there.

"That… that… man!" Sarah made the word 'man' seem like the ultimate insult. "How dare he spend all this time teaching me and then just cast me aside! The insufferable git!" Sarah then took a deep breath and turned to the other two. "All right, how do I get out of here?"

"You can't," Erik said simply, also still stunned by the surprise.

"Why not?" She looked as if she was trying not to get angry again.

"Only the king's magic can transport any one in or out of this oubliette. He made very sure of that."

"Did he? No one can get in or out? We'll just see about that!"

"Sarah, you can't…" Jenny tried.

"Watch me! He has messed with the wrong girl this time. That stupid… overbearing… sneaky… stupid… Right when he needed me most! He could get himself killed facing these odds! I'm going to get out, and I'm going to show him just what I can do."

"All right!" Jenny shouted back at her. "But don't just transport there. She'll sense that kind of magic. You'll have to turn into a bird to cross the Labyrinth back to the castle."

Sarah nodded. "Thank you. You may not have to live here much longer if I have anything to do about it."

"Good luck," Lord Erik said.

Then she vanished. The two stood in silence for a moment, and then Erik started to move towards his room.

"Stay with me," Jenny said quietly. But he heard her and turned towards her again. "Just until… I don't want to wait alone."

He nodded and the two sat next to each other in silence. Jenny was incredibly tense. He took her hand in his and they waited.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah let out a cry of triumph when she stood on the ground in one of the outer northern parts of the Labyrinth. Remembering Jenny's advice, Sarah pulled the magic around her and willed herself to have wings. She had never done this before; Jareth had mentioned it was one of the most difficult magics to master and they would cover it once he was absolutely sure she was ready. But nothing was going to stop her from getting back to the castle… back to Jareth. The stupid bastard needed her. Focusing on that, suddenly she stumbled. She put out an arm to steady herself, but it was no longer an arm. Outstretched was a white feathered wing. Sarah looked at her shadow on the ground. There was no mistaking that shape.

She had turned into a swan. Letting out a burbling swan laugh, Sarah flapped her wings and felt the knowledge of flight come instinctively.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Jareth sat on his throne, rigid and upright, and waited. It wasn't long before Amneris walked into the room.

"Well, if it isn't the mighty Goblin King," she taunted. "Where are all your loyal subjects to keep me away? And where is your lovely _bride_?"

"I wouldn't have thought you'd be so bold as to openly attack my kingdom." Jareth's voice was icily calm.

"And I thought you wouldn't be so stupid as to defy me," she shot back. "You were supposed to marry _me_!"

"I never did understand your desire for that alliance," he said.

She laughed, and he had to stop himself from cringing. "Simple. The goblins would make a perfect addition to my arsenal of nightmares. And you, Jareth… you're just a delightful bonus. But you had to go and marry some whore instead. You've denied me my right as your queen, so I'll just have to take it all by force."

A destructive blast of magic shot towards him, but Jareth sprang from the throne just in time to avoid it.

"You'll never touch any of it, Amneris. You have finally made your last mistake."

And so the duel began. Spells and blasts of power were hurled and rebounded off of shields and deflectors. Chunks of stone flew from the walls when an explosion of power crashed into them. Jareth saw that his advantage would be in keeping Amneris talking, keeping her distracted, while he found some sort of a weakness.

"Why this private battle? Why a duel?" he demanded. "You've bewitched my subjects. They could easily finish me off for you. You could have an execution."

"I want the satisfaction of finishing off you and your whore myself!" she laughed. "Where is the little tart? Hiding in the royal chambers?"

"Or maybe the spell isn't strong enough," Jareth said ignoring her insults. "It's just a simple hypnosis spell: just an easy way to control them, but not strong enough to hold if they are told to do something completely against their nature, like killing themselves… or killing their king. It's only there to take away one of my weapons, not give you a new one."

Amneris sneered and threw a particularly nasty spell towards him.

Jareth dodged the spell and continued talking. "And even if you did call on them for help, that large of a spell spread out on so many… it must drain a lot of magic to do that. You wouldn't have enough strength to fight me."

"Oh, I have strength enough! You are just trying to distract me. Well, Jareth, it won't work!"

While she sent a ball of flame towards him, Amneris used her magic to pull one of the goblin weapons around the room up unseen behind him. He blocked the fire with ease, but Jareth cried out when the stray knitting needle (more resembling a curved blade on a long shaft than what mortals use to knit socks) pierced into his back. He fell to the ground in agony, blood quickly soaking his back.

"Jareth!"

The scream almost hurt Jareth more than the wound. He knew that voice, and this was the last place he wanted her to be, the last sight he wanted her to see. Amneris turned to find out who had intruded on her moment of triumph.

Sarah stood in the arch leading up to the Escher room.

* * *

_I know. It's a horrible spot to end at. But in splitting up this battle into two parts it was the best place to do it. If the reviews small in number but big in encouragement get bigger in number, I'll work my tail off getting the rest of it done and up by the weekend. By Friday if the number of reviews for this chapter hit double digits. After the conclusion of the battle I think there is just the epilogue left. So go ahead and click the little button below. Short note, long review, my muses love them all.  
_


	14. Cat and Mouse

_Woohoo! I got it up earlier than I had anticipated. With **Torchwood** this week turning me into an absolute spaz, I wasn't sure that I could do it this fast. My great apologies to all my readers for the cliffhanger. I like occasionally being evil and such, but I think the even worse cliffhangers in **Torchwood** have made me not want to prolong your pain (RTD is EVIL-- wonderfully brilliant, amazing, and talented... but EVIL). So here it is! It backs up a little in Sarah's point of view.  
_

* * *

When Sarah had crossed to the Goblin City, she had seen that the goblins were still immobile. She didn't know exactly what sort of a spell had been cast over them, but she didn't want to take the chance that they were just frozen in place. She would have bet money that the spell allowed Amneris to control them when the twisted queen needed. But also would have bet that a few good warriors had stayed out of the rain, and thus out of Amneris' spell.

Before going to the castle, Sarah flew into a part of the forest where there was a little stone cottage in a small clearing: her three friends' house.

"Hoggle! Didymus! Ludo! I need you," she called.

"Your majesty," Sir Didymus said as he came out first and gave her a sweeping bow.

"Good Sir Didymus, please tell me you are all unaffected by the spell," Sarah said hopefully though she was pretty sure of the answer.

"But of course, your majesty," the little fox said. He was then joined by the other two.

"You need us, Sarah?" Hoggle asked.

"Yes, I need to get to Jareth in the castle, but I'm afraid of what Amneris has done to the goblins. I want you three to guard the castle and make sure the goblins can't get in unless you are absolutely sure they are no longer under the spell. Can you do it?" Sarah had just realised it was an awful large task for her faithful champions.

"Yeah," Hoggle said gruffly.

"I know I could take on battalions of goblins myself alone," Didymus said. "But perhaps your majesty could order the assistance of the fieries… just in case."

"They aren't affected?" Sarah asked.

"Nah," Hoggle explained. "They hate water. They've been hiding in the caves not far from here."

"All right," Sarah said. "You start going to the city as fast as you can. It should only take a few minutes. I'll go speak with the fieries. They'll come and help. When they do, Didymus, you'll be in charge. Ludo, listen to Didymus and call your rock friends when they're needed. Try not to hurt the goblins too much. Just keep them out of the castle until the spell over them is broken. Hoggle, you'll come with me. Enter through the hidden passage to the kitchens and I'll meet you there. There are a few goblins in the castle that weren't touched by the rain. I want you to lead them. If Jareth is hurt I leave it to you to protect him."

"And you, Sarah?" Hoggle asked, even though he could already guess the answer.

"I'm going after Amneris. You have the plan? Let's go."

Sarah once more transformed into a swan and flew to the cave Hoggle had said. The fieries were only too glad to get out and have some proper fun now that the evilly wet rain had stopped. It didn't take them long to get out of the forest and to the Goblin City. As Sarah flew above the city she saw all of her friends take their places. She dived through a window of the lower castle and only had to run a few steps to the kitchens.

"Hoggle, are you ready?" she asked as she looked over his little band of soldiers.

"Yes, your majesty," he answered. She could have sworn she heard admiration in the gruff dwarf's voice.

"Can I help, Lady?" Splunk asked.

"I'm counting on it, Splunk," Sarah said while thinking. "You'll stay with me. The rest will stay with Hoggle. The main priority is to make sure the king is safe. If he's injured…"

Sarah stopped. She couldn't finish the thought. What if he _was_ injured? Or worse? The ideas suddenly swimming in her head made her ill. She didn't want anything like that to happen to him. He had to be safe.

Part of her questioned why. Only a few weeks ago she had been a normal human Aboveground living a normal, if somewhat West End glamorous, life. She had hated the Goblin King. Hadn't she? She was better off without him. Wasn't she?

_I have reordered time. I have turned the world upside down. And I have done it all for __**you**__! _

_He sounds like a good match, if he's like what I think he is. _

_Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave._

_Sounds more like a proposal._

_I married _you_, Sarah. You must come to me because you want it, not because of anything—or anyone—else._

_Fear me, love me, do as I say, and I will be your slave._

_I love you._

The memories flashed by in her head. It was so obvious now that she had been in denial that he loved her. But he did. He loved her.

She then remembered all the dinners together, all the training sessions… the kiss… their wedding night.

It then hit her like a tons of bricks. There was a perfectly good reason why she had to save Jareth, why she wasn't better off without him.

She loved him.

"Lady?" Splunk asked.

Sarah had only been lost in her thoughts for a few seconds, only a few seconds to realise she loved him.

"Yes, I'm fine," she said. "Do we know where the king is?"

"His king-ness and the evil witch are fighting in the throne room," one of the goblins said.

"Then Hoggle, you'll take your team in through the main doors. I'll go around through the Room of Many Stairs. Good luck everyone."

"Be careful, Sarah," Hoggle said as he followed his group. She heard him order the goblins to be stealthier as they turned out of sight.

"Come on, Splunk."

"Yes, Lady!" The goblin sounded eager.

It didn't take them long to reach the throne room. The Escher room, known to everyone else as the Room of Many Stairs, was far easier to navigate when one had magic. She heard the sounds of the battle as she quickly, but quietly, came down the stairs to the throne room. The two duelling Fae came into view just in time for Sarah to see Jareth fall with one of those ghastly goblin "knitting needles" lodged in his back.

Everything seemed in slow motion for a brief moment. Sarah heard a scream and then realised it was her own voice. Rage boiled and took over completely.

"Amneris!" Sarah's voice was hard as steel. "I think this is between you and me, don't you?"

The Nightmare Queen laughed. "Since I've finished off your king, I think I can now take care of you. Let's see which of you has to see the other die first!"

"You want to kill me, come and get me!" Sarah turned and ran back to the Escher room. She could hear Amneris scream in frustration. _Good,_ Sarah thought, _changing her plans will throw her off._

She ran down one set of stairs, jumped a short ways to another set, ran up some more and waited by an archway. Amneris came charging into the room but stopped when she saw what it was. The evil queen let out another scream of frustration as she looked around for Sarah. Sarah let herself be seen just before slipping out of sight through the archway. She could hear Amneris going up and down stairs to find her. Though this was a fight for her life, Sarah couldn't help but have fun during her game of cat and mouse; granted, things were much better for the cat than the mouse.

"Come out and face me, you little brat!" Amneris shouted.

Sarah ran unseen up and down and around more stairs. "Why? I'm having so much fun."

Once again, Amneris was forced to look around the room and try to find the source of Sarah's voice. She continued to scramble about the stairs trying to reach Sarah. In all of Sarah's reading of political texts, she had learned that only the Fae royalty of the Labyrinth could easily navigate the room. In fact, one of the reasons so many Fae avoided the whole Labyrinth was a poorly developed sense of direction. And Amneris was luckily one of those Fae that so easily got lost.

Sarah continued to appear and disappear a few times before deciding Amneris was ready for phase two. She motioned to Splunk, and he began bouncing around the stairs, giggling the whole time. Amneris began throwing spells at him while still trying to get to Sarah and hit her with anything, but the little goblin had a whole lot of practice in dealing with a Fae's attack. His only reaction was to bounce and giggle even more, constantly distracting and confusing Amneris.

Sarah then started phase three. Pulling on the magic pulsing in the castle, Sarah covered all the stairs with ice. Her own steps were immune to the magic; breaking out of Jareth's spell in the oubliette had helped her figure out how to make a spell specific to the one that cast it. It was a risky move using that much magic, but Sarah felt confident she could control it.

The Nightmare Queen stumbled with another scream. She tried again and again to get up, but the ice was too slick. She sent out balls of fire trying to melt the ice, but if anything the ice only got more slippery. It would briefly melt then refreeze even thicker.

Sarah looked out from her hiding place in one of the arches. Splunk came to her side. Amneris' chin was bleeding from where she must have scraped it on the stair. Her dress was torn from scrambling over the stairs. Sarah couldn't help but laugh coldly at the sight.

Amneris looked even more enraged. "That's it! Goblins, come to your new queen and serve her!"

Sarah could feel the other woman's spell reaching out and awakening the frozen-still goblins. She could also feel the amount of magical control it was draining from Amneris. Her spell left by the rain wouldn't even last long now that it was no longer dormant.

Sarah started laughing her mirthless laugh again when she heard the bellow of Ludo calling the rocks echo around the castle. The goblins would not be coming any time soon. Her little band outside could easily hold them long enough for Amneris' spell to wear off.

"Why are you laughing?" Amneris demanded. She threw a ball of fire at Sarah, but it was very weak and effortlessly cast aside.

"I'm laughing because _my_ goblins aren't coming. An army was left untouched by your spell and now surrounds the castle," Sarah said, stretching the truth. "No one is coming to your aid. You've lost, Amneris."

It was time for the cat to catch the mouse.

"No!" The screamed echoed throughout every arch and passage in the room.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

As soon as Amneris had followed Sarah out of the throne room, Hoggle and his group had rushed to the side of their king. Luckily a small elfin healer was among the group and immediately began seeing to Jareth's wounds.

As Jareth winced and gritted his teeth in pain, the High King and Vandeele walked into the room. Vandeele rushed to Jareth's side while the High King surveyed the room and the view from the window.

"Jareth, what happened? Where's Queen Amneris?" Vand asked him, throwing all protocol and rank etiquette out the window.

"Former Queen Amneris," the High King corrected.

"She went into the Room of Many Stairs," Jareth croaked in pain. "Sarah… she…"

Then Sarah walked back into the throne room from the stairs leading to the Escher room.

"Queen Sarah," the High King nodded his head towards her, and she gave a tired and slightly sloppy curtsy in response. "Where is Former Queen Amneris?"

"In the Room of Many Stairs," Sarah said. "She's a bit stuck in a cage of icicles and under the guard of a goblin at the moment. Did you need to see her?"

"You trapped her yourself?" The High King sounded both shocked and impressed. "As the one who stopped her, and the one attacked, it is your right to decided her punishment. Unfortunately we cannot simply kill her."

"I think she might do well to receive some of what she's given," Sarah after a moment's thought and trying not to collapse. "May I suggest cursing her to a mortal life while her Fae body is trapped in a tomb of ice?"

"Very well." The High King's mouth twitched. "And the condition of her release? There must be one."

"Oh, how about until the High Queen allows the princess that Amneris cursed into the High Court's inner circle?"

Now the High King smiled. He nodded his head and left to see to the former Nightmare Queen. No longer needing to stand, Sarah crashed to her knees then flopped onto the floor.

"Your majesty?" Vand said with concern.

"I'm fine," Sarah mumbled. "It's just been a very long day. Jareth?"

"He'll mend," the elfin healer said.

Vand moved out of the way so she could see the Goblin King. The couple just stared at each other. They each had so much to say, but it all was left unsaid for the moment.

"Remind me to be mad at you later," Sarah said instead of all the others things she needed to tell him.

Jareth gave a small chuckle. "I was just about to say the same thing to you."

Sarah smiled. "Vand, you don't see any pigs flying, do you?"

* * *

_**If you have any questions, if any part of this was confusing, please let me know**. The next chapter is pretty much the last chance to clear everything up. So tell me what you think. I'm not sure how fast the next and possibly last chapter will be in coming, but reviews make it go faster. Don't let the muses become distracted by that Captain Jack Harkness and his Torchwood. If there is enough interest I may be persuaded into doing a sequel; I'm not sure yet.  
_


	15. Finale

_All right, here it is. The end. This has been fun writing, but it was even more fun hearing from all of you and what you think. Huge thanks go to you all!  
_

* * *

Though in need of rest and more healing Jareth insisted on staying in the throne room. He wanted to begin cleaning up after Amneris' attack, and he didn't trust the goblins to start it without proper instruction. Pillows had been added to his throne so that he could just sit and lean back comfortably. Sarah was also wearily sitting in the throne that had been made for her.

"You should get some rest, Sarah," he had said.

"So should you," she had answered back.

"Right now the kingdom needs its king."

"And the kingdom has a queen of equal rank, so it needs her too."

The High King had taken Amneris and placed the curse on her. His work done, he left with Vand to remove Jareth's lock over the oubliette. The High King had returned to his court and Vand took Jehanna and Lord Erik to the Goblin Castle. Sarah and Jareth were just about to hear Sir Didymus' report when they arrived.

"Please go on, Sir Didymus," Jareth said making the new arrivals wait.

"The foe did not rouse themselves to battle for some time, but when they did their efforts were no match for me! I fought them all!"

"With the help of your troupe," Sarah reminded him.

"Of course, your majesty," the little fox answered as if he had said that in the first place. "My brother Ludo summoned the very rocks to keep the enemy at bay."

"Causing confusion and chaos among the goblins, so that they were more fighting themselves than you?" Sarah asked.

"Your majesty is as correct as she is brave. The fieries added to that chaos until the army against us broke from the chains of the spell and turned to our cause."

"Thank you, Sir Didymus," Jareth said. "I shall have to make you general over my goblin army for this brave act. The others will be rewarded as well."

If Sarah wasn't so exhausted she would have been laughing at the whole thing. Army indeed! It was a good thing that no one really wanted to take over the Labyrinth.

Jenny had had enough waiting. "Is someone going to tell me what's going on? And why you both aren't in bed since you both look like you've been hit by a bus?"

"A bus?" Jareth asked.

"I'll explain later," Sarah said.

"So what happened to Amneris?" Jenny demanded.

"Sarah defeated her," Jareth said. "And the High King agreed to Sarah's punishment for the former queen. Amneris' Fae body will be trapped in an ice tomb, her essence reborn into a mortal body and left there until the day the High Queen lets you into the High Court's inner circle."

"That's almost the same as what she did to me," Jenny said with a slight smile. "But the High Queen will never do that. For one I'm too young, and for another she hates me beyond anything."

"Then I suppose she'll be stuck Aboveground as a mortal until she dies," Jareth said proudly. "Her essence will be gone and the Fae body will be a shell forever stuck in ice."

Jenny looked at Sarah, who was trying very hard not to fall asleep. "You are so brilliant! And cruel, yet surprisingly generous."

"How am I generous?" Sarah asked.

"She gets a mortal life. She gets a time to live and die without ever knowing what she truly is. That's far more generous than other punishments of eternal pain and torture."

"Damn it!" Sarah said without any real feeling. "I should have gone with the eternal torture."

"At least this way there is no chance of her escape," Jareth said.

"Right, that's why I didn't go with eternal languishing in some dimly lit cell. Ok, it was cruel enough but still generous."

"Lord Erik," Jareth said. "You will be generously rewarded for your time and services."

"Your majesty," the half-masked Fae said with a bow. "Permission to court your sister would be reward enough."

The king and queen looked at each other, both slightly baffled. "I thought that fell under eternal torment," Sarah said.

"True, it seems more of a punishment," Jareth agreed.

"Hey!" Jenny shouted.

"Nevertheless, your majesties, I would like to have your permission to do so," Erik insisted.

"Jehanna?" Jareth asked.

"My answer would be yes," she said while blushing.

"Very well," Jareth said, still unsure of the situation. "Just what happened in that oubliette?"

Jenny and Erik looked at each other, smiled, took each other's hand, and said nothing.

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

Sarah didn't get up until after noon the day after the battle. Cleaning up the Labyrinth was going slowly since the goblins were still a bit lethargic, a bit stunned, from the spell that had been controlling them. The rain had left some physical damage as well as the magical, but it was all being put right again. The once defenders of the castle were now helping clean as much mud from the goblins as they could. Goblins don't take well to baths, but Splunk was actually convincing quite a few to do so willingly.

Sarah put on a loose gown and walked to Jareth's chambers. She entered quietly in case he was still asleep. He was in bed, but not asleep.

"Sarah," he said with some surprise.

"Hi," Sarah greeted awkwardly. "I thought I'd see how you were doing."

"I am mending," he said.

"Oh, good. That's good."

"You were magnificent yesterday," he said.

"You didn't even see me much. And I'm still very angry at you for just casting me aside and putting me in the oubliette."

"But you broke out. How did you… how did you do that?"

"I just forced it. And then I had to take Jenny's advice to fly rather than transport to the castle."

"You flew?" His tone was torn between amazement and anger that she had tried something like that on her own.

"Yes, apparently I can turn into a swan."

"I think I wished for you to have an owl form like mine, but I should have known that someone with your beauty would transform into such a beautiful animal. You truly are magnificent."

"Well… I…" Sarah's voice stumbled at the praise. "I also came to say that I'd like to move in."

"Move in where?" he asked not understanding.

"Here… with you."

"Sarah…"

"When you just sent me away, it hurt so much, Jareth. I had to be here to help you. I know you wanted to protect me, but I wanted to protect you too. Jareth… I… I love you. And we are married. I think it's time to act like it now. And I've been so stupid ignoring everything, ignoring how you feel for me, and in doing so ignoring my own feelings and reactions, just moving from point to point, each part of the day to the next, when I needed to step back and really see what was going on… and oh God! I'm rambling. But I do… I do love you, Jareth."

Jareth stared at her for a moment while she shifted awkwardly from one foot to the other. "Forgive me, my love, but with these injuries I cannot walk over to you and kiss you. Would you kindly come over here to me?"

Sarah smiled and quickly crossed the few feet to the bed. She leaned over and pressed her lips to his. She tried to hold back and be gentle since he was still hurt, but Jareth was so passionate that gentle was impossible.

When they pulled apart, Jareth was still staring at her with wonder. He asked, "This isn't a dream, is it? I've dreamed of this so often."

"No, it's not a dream," Sarah assured him. "It's only forever."

He grinned. "Not long at all."

OIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIOIO

To say that the couple lived happily ever after would suggest that they lived from this point on without struggles, trials, and adventures. All of those they had in abundance. But when one considers that throughout the good times and the bad they had each other and their love, on the whole, they spent the rest of forever very happy indeed.

* * *

_And that is it. I hope you liked it. I can't believe I actually finshed a fic in less than a year. Woohoo! I'm not sure if a sequel will come; **that depends entirely on the interest in it**. Now I'm going to start another fic, but not for Labyrinth. If anyone is interested in a crossover between _Doctor Who_, _Torchwood_, and _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_, that is what my next project is. So keep your eyes out for that.  
_

_Anywho, please review. And for those who liked the silent scenes with Jenny and Erik, there is a drawing of it now on my deviantART. You can access it through my profile, or remove the spaces: _http ://lady-de-macabre. deviantart. com/ art/ In-the-Oubliette-130016824

**Thank you all for reading this story!**


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